Urine test may detect head and neck cancers

Researchers have developed a urine test that could potentially help doctors diagnose head and neck cancers earlier.

The test detects tiny fragments of transrenal cell-free tumor DNA, which travels from the bloodstream into urine. These tiny fragments tend to be too small to be detected by current urine or blood tests for cancer DNA.

For their study, the researchers specifically tested for DNA originating from human papillomavirus-associated oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma, but their findings could apply to a variety of cancer types.

Read more: JCI Insight

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