A blood test could detect breast cancer up to five years before any clinical signs of the disease, according to researchers.

Cancer cells produce proteins called antigens that trigger the body to make antibodies against them: autoantibodies.

Researchers at the University of Nottingham say they are developing a test that identifies the body's immune response to tumour-associated antigens (TAAs), as they are a good indicator of cancer.

They developed panels of TAAs associated with breast cancer to detect whether there are autoantibodies against them in blood samples taken from patients.

The scientists found autoantibodies against a number of TAAs could be detected up to five years before any clinical signs of the tumour.


In a pilot study the scientists, part of Nottingham's Centre of Excellence for Autoimmunity in Cancer (CEAC), took blood samples from 90 breast cancer patients at the time they were diagnosed.

They matched them with samples taken from a control group of 90 cancer-free patients.

Image: The test could detect breast cancer five years before any clinical signs show

PhD student Daniyah Alfattani, who was in the research group, said: "The results of our study showed that breast cancer does induce autoantibodies against panels of specific tumour-associated antigens.

"We were able to detect cancer with reasonable accuracy by identifying these autoantibodies in the blood."

Their research found the more panels of TAAs they used the higher the accuracy for detecting cancer, with a panel of nine antigens correctly detecting breast cancer in 37% of the samples from cancer patients and correctly identifying 79% of the control samples as being cancer-free.

When there was a panel of five TAAs, they correctly identified cancer in 29% of the cancer patients and no cancer in 84% of the control samples.

Ms Alfattani added: "We need to develop and further validate this test. However, these results are encouraging and indicate that it's possible to detect a signal for early breast cancer.

"Once we have improved the accuracy of the test, then it opens the possibility of using a simple blood test to improve early detection of the disease."

The scientists are now testing samples from 800 patients and estimate that, with a fully funded development programme, the test could be available in the clinic in about four to five years.

Other cancer experts have said the research is "promising" but more work is needed to claim the test could be used to screen for early breast cancer.