A local company offers a patient-friendly way to assess a person’s current risk for colorectal cancer, writes Nadia Badarudin
COLORECTAL cancer is cancer of the large bowel (colon) or back passage (rectum). Research shows that the illness, widely known as colon or bowel cancer, is “the second most common case of cancer mortality worldwide, with an incidence of approximately one million cases per year and more than 500,000 deaths”.
In Malaysia, colorectal cancer is “the second most common cancer in women and has recently overtaken lung cancer to become the most common cancer in men’”. (Journal of Experimental & Clinical Cancer Research, 2010).
MOST PREVENTABLE, LEAST PREVENTED
The silent and deadly cancer, which claimed the life of Bee Gees member Robin Gibbs in May, is preventable and curable in early stages.
Despite it being the only form of cancer that can be detected and treated with a single screening, people often detest the unpleasant and embarrassing procedures involved such as the stool-based tests or the colonoscopy (a procedure where a tiny camera on a tube is inserted through the anus into the large intestine).
EARLY DETECTION SAVES LIFE
Thanks to the wonders of science, there is a new, patient-friendly way to detect the illness, with just a small sample of blood.
ColonSentry is a blood-based molecular test that can determine an individual’s current risk for colorectal cancer.
According to Professor Datuk Dr Liew Choong Chin, founder and chairman of GeneNews Diagnostics Sdn Bhd, ColonSentry was developed to encourage individuals, especially those who are at risk, to go for early screening.
“It’s the first step towards regular screening, and should be used in advance of colonoscopy as a pre-screening alert. It determines a person’s current risk of having the cancer at a particular point in time by a simply convenient blood test,” says the chief scientist of GeneNews Diagnostics.
He explains that ColonSentry measures the activity of seven genes in blood, called biomarkers, to assess a person’s likelihood to have the disease.
The test, approved by the New York State Department of Health, was developed based on the patented Sentinel Principle (that he pioneered), an award-winning technology that detects and stages virtually any disease and medical condition from a single blood sample.
“The status of the biomarkers will reflect the current presence or severity of the disease, and it can increase cancer detection by up to four times,” he says.
The benefits include no handling of stool or toilet water, no dietary restrictions and no risk of bowel bleeding, perforation or infection.
Dr Liew says that unlike a genetic test that merely provides information about genetic predisposition or future risk, ColonSentry is predictive and assesses the current risk.
“Assessing the current colorectal status and track the changes over time with the test can also help the person to manage his or her health well,” he says, adding that the test is currently available in Canada, China and Malaysia.
GET SCREENED
GeneNews Diagnostics, a subsidiary of GeneNews Limited, Canada, is the sole provider of ColonSentry in Malaysia. Incorporated at Technology Park Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur in 2009, the company was awarded the BioNexus status by the Malaysian Biotechnology Corporation in the same year.
The blood tests are done at panel clinics, and results available within eight to 10 business days. For details, visit www.genenewsdiagnostics.com, e-mail [email protected] or contact 03-8996 1323.
Fast Facts
The earlier colorectal cancer (CRC) is detected, the better chance of survival.
• The five-year relative survival rate for people whose CRC is treated in an early stage is better than 90 per cent.
• The five-year relative survival rate if CRC has spread to distant organs (i.e. liver or lung) is less than 10 per cent.
• Only 37 per cent of CRC are found in early treatable stages.
• As many as 60 per cent of deaths from CRC can be prevented if everyone age 50 and above were screened regularly.
Source: NST