Faculty Member Paul Tempst

A multidisciplinary team of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center investigators has taken a step toward determining which proteins in the blood may indicate the presence of several common types of cancer. The research, led by proteomics specialist Paul Tempst, was published in January in the Journal of Clinical Investigation. [PubMed Abstract and Full Text]

Currently there are very few diagnostic blood tests for cancer, and the few that do exist -- such as prostate specific antigen (PSA) for prostate cancer -- can be unreliable or give inconclusive results. But the field of proteomics is growing, and investigators are finding new ways to identify and detect defective proteins that can lead to cancer. Using an advanced detection technology called MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry, the Memorial Sloan-Kettering team looked at a class of protein degradation products, or peptides, in the blood of patients with prostate, breast, or bladder cancer and compared them to peptides found in the blood of healthy volunteers without cancer. There were 106 samples total.

They found that for each of the three cancer types, there was a unique profile of peptide markers in the blood. Although much more work must be done to expand and refine the definition of which peptides are the most important indicators of cancer, the group believes the findings have important implications for future efforts in the development of accurate, noninvasive diagnostic tests for cancer.

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