International Physician Update

Latest Advances from the Bench and Bedside

“Hedgehog” Signal Distinguishes Lethalfrom Localized Prostate Cancers

Most prostate cancers grow slowly; however, there is no sure way to tell whose cancer will stay in the gland, and whose will be aggressive and spread and turn out to be fatal. Johns Hopkins researchers may have discovered a way to distinguish lethal metastatic prostate cancers from those restricted to the prostate with a test that measures the activity of a growth and development signaling pathway called Hedgehog.

If the test can predict which prostate cancers will spread, it could revolutionize how doctors decide to treat patients
with prostate cancer. The research was published in the September 12 online edition of Nature.

New Blood Test to Detect Ovarian Cancer

Johns Hopkins researchers have designed a blood test to detect ovarian cancer using three proteins found in common in the blood of women with the disease. Their preliminary studies with the new test suggest a molecular signature exclusive to this deadly cancer, known for its ability to remain undetected and spread quickly.

The Hopkins test, described in the August 15 issue of Cancer Research, identifies the proteins as a truncated form of transthyretin, a fragment of ITIH4, and apolipoprotein A1, teased out with a rigorous
evaluation of protein patterns present in blood samples from ovarian cancer patients at several U.S. and international hospitals. 

Other research groups are evaluating ovarian cancer blood tests that use protein profiles consisting of tens of thousands of unidentified molecules. The research was led by Daniel W. Chan, Ph.D., director of the Biomarker Discovery Center at Hopkins.