Competitive Advantages
- Detects early stage ovarian cancer
- More accurate than current methods
- Cost effective
- Portable and easy to use
Summary
Our researchers have discovered a novel method of detecting ovarian cancer by measuring urinary levels of the Receptor for HyaluronanMediated Motility (RHAMM). Ovarian cancer has the highest mortality rate among gynecological cancers. The lack of early symptoms and the absence of a reliable screening test results in over 70% of women being diagnosed after the disease has spread beyond the ovary. This leads to poor prognoses with approximately 14,000 deaths annually in the U.S. Currently, the only standard methods available for ovarian cancer detection include a physical pelvic examination by a physician, an ultrasound, or a blood test to identify CA125 biomarker levels. However, none of these methods provide a reliably consistent and accurate means for ovarian cancer detection. USF researchers have identified a protein known as RHAMM that is highly elevated in the urine of patients afflicted with ovarian cancer. This protein may therefore serve as a novel ovarian cancer biomarker. RHAMM levels can be easily tested by a commercially available ELISA test, making this analysis method both simple and readily available. Further, elevated levels of urinary RHAMM appear to be more accurate for detecting ovarian cancer than the current gold standard– serum levels of CA125. RHAMM can assist with ovarian cancer detection in both early and late stages, and can be tested for by women at home, in a physicians’ office or at a patient’s bedside. Urinary RHAMM testing will be useful not just for disease detection, but will also help to monitor disease progression as well as therapeutic efficacy of any current treatments.
Graph Shows the Relative RHAMM Levels in Ovarian Cancer Patients Verses Non-Cancer Patients
Desired Partnerships
- License
- Sponsored Research
- Co-Development