There are numerous cancer detection and prevention tests that can be used to detect cancer. We are listing the tests that are considered alternative or less toxic than standard conventional tests. Some of these tests are not used by conventional physicians, but you can always ask them to look into the test. It is important to understand that one should not rely on any one test - some tests can result in false positives or negatives. One must take all clinical factors into consideration to back up a diagnosis.
AMAS - Anti-malignin antibody screen test is designed to pick up cancers well in advance of other signs and symptoms, months before conventional medical tests can detect it. However, for advanced cancer, if the antimalignin antibody is wiped out, the test won't work. For this, other types of testing is recommended. We have also heard of a few breast cancer patients have received a false negative on this test. Again, it is important not to rely on any one test. Oncolab will send a free test kit for you to take to your doctor.
Biological Terraine Assessment (BTA) is a computerized device that measures your blood, saliva and urine for: the amount of electrons present, pH balance, and minerals in these fluids. It will show how healthy your cells are. More specifically, it will show if the cellular environment is too acidic, if there are too few electrons to combat free radicals and/or to produce energy, or if there are too few minerals to buffer the acids.
Cancer Marker Tests: These are immunological methods - cancer markers that are produced as cancer grows and are detectable even before it reaches a size big enough for detection by other methods. This early detection system is vital for early medical intervention that significantly improves the chances of recovery:
- Alpha fetoprotein (AFP) levels are often elevated in liver cancers (hepatocellular) and testicular cancers (non-seminomatous). Raised levels are also present during pregnancy or some gastrointestinal cancers.
- CA 15.3 values are often elevated in patients with breast cancers. When there is a history of cancer among family members, patients may be advised to also do a breast mammogram. Besides breast cancer, other non-malignant conditions (eg. cirrhosis, benign diseases of ovaries & breast) have also been known to cause elevated CA 15.3 levels.
- CA 19.9 - for gastric/pancreatic or stomach cancer - It is a diagnostic tool for those with stomach trouble such as symptoms of gastritis, abdominal pains, or gas. Its level is best evaluated along with CEA marker test.
- CA125 has become a widely used tumor marker which is measured most often in women with cancers of the reproductive system including the uterus, fallopian tubes and ovaries. Other cancers that may cause abnormal CA125 levels include cancer of the pancreas, lungs, breast and colon. However, CA125/CA125-II can be elevated during menstruation, pregnancy or in individuals with ovarian cysts, pericarditis, hepatitis, cirrhosis of the liver or peritonitis, an infection of the lining of the abdomen, and even in 1-2% of healthy individuals. Once a cancer is diagnosed, CA125/CA125-II levels may prove to be an effective indicator of the effectiveness of cancer treatment. A declining CA125/CA125-II value may indicate a good response to treatment and a favorable prognosis. Persistently rising CA125/CA125-II levels may be associated with a growing tumor, presence of tumor on the peritoneum that lines the abdomen or a recurrence of a previously treated tumor. Additional evaluation is necessary to make such determinations. CA 125-II, an improved version of the original CA 125 assay, is now commercially available.
- Carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) is a cancer marker to screen for colorectal cancer - it is associated with digestive tract cancers (eg of the colon) as well as other malignant and non-malignant disorders. It is recommended for those with frequent constipation, diarrhea, or bleeding piles for an initial diagnostic tool. It can also help detect Medullary thyroid cancer (MTC).
- EVP - Cancer marker to screen for nasophryngeal cancer. Epstein Bar virus (EBV) has been shown to have a direct relationship with NPC where it can be detected in NPC tumors and patients with NPC tend to have higher titres of EBV specific antibodies than the general population.
CBC Blood test lists the amounts detected of about 44 substances normally found in the blood and compares the blood status with known indicators of diseases.
Darkfield Microscopy allows doctors to view blood cells to see how healthy the cells are. Additional lab tests can then be performed to provide a more comprehensive clinical picture of an individual's condition. In Southern California, contact James Privitera, MD at (818) 966-1618 for more information on this. There are a number of naturopaths and alternative physicians that use this approach.
DR-70 is a simple blood test that screens for 13 different cancers at the same time. It is highly specific and catches cancer long before you would suspect anything was amiss. It runs about $100. Cancers that can be detected by the test are of the lung, colon, breast, stomach, liver, rectum, ovary, cervix, esophagus, thyroid, and pancreas, and trophoblast and malignant lymphoma. AMDL has also received clearance from the FDA to market the PyloriProbe™ test, which can detect the presence of Helicobacter Pylori in the stomach, the primary cause of ulcers and a potential cause of stomach cancer.
ElectroDermal Screening (EDS), is a form of computerized screening based on acupuncture. By taking readings at the different acupuncture points, doctors can tell the health of the organs and of the body itself. Then by having the patient hold substances or remedies while the EDS tests the acupuncture points, the physician can tell what the patient is reacting to and what might heal him or her. EDS can be used to detect many disease states, plus the presence of chemical toxins, food and substance allergies, and imbalances in the body. Electro-acupuncture biofeedback, a form of EDS has been very successful in screening for a wide variety of conditions. However in screening for cancer it is advisable to also use traditional blood tests, blood analysis with a dark field microscope, and other screening tests. There are a number of naturopaths and alternative physicians that provide EDS screening.
Endoscopic ultrasound is another test being used to detect tumors and help in diagnosing GI cancers. Unlike a traditional endoscope, which looks inside the GI tract, the endoscopic ultrasound looks through the tissue into surrounding organs. Many times, if something is found, a biopsy is done at the same time as an endoscopic ultrasound to determine if it is cancer or just an infection. This technique is also used to help determine the stage of pancreatic cancer without doing surgery.
Lymphocyte Size Analysis was developed by Valentin Govallo, MD, a Russian immunologist. The test measures the diameters of lymphocytes and counts the numbers of swollen versus normal cells in a sample of a patient's blood. If the number of swollen lymphocytes is excessive or when the ratio of swollen to normal lymphocytes is out of balance, then cancer will most likely develop. (Note: A lymphocyte is a form of while blood cell whose numbers increase during infection.)
Maverick Monitoring Test (MMT) is a not really a cancer test, but it measures malondialdehyde (MDA) levels in the urine or blood. The amount of MDA tells the physician how much free-radical damage the body has sustained, as well as how the patient is responding to a nutritional anti-oxidant program, based on how much MDA levels decrease while on a particular therapy. Maverick doesn't diagnose a disease, rather, it highlights the possible preconditions that may contribute to an illness and can help detect a health problem before it occurs. Another interesting thing the test can do is measure the effects of chemotherapy and radiation and help determine the best dosages of antioxidants to counteract these effects.
Positron Emission Tomography - PET scan - PET works by providing a dynamic image of the body's interior. Instead of taking a picture of the bones, like an X-ray, or the internal organs and soft tissue, like a MRI, PET lets doctors visualize the body's metabolism. Cells use the simple sugar glucose as a source of energy. By tracking how much glucose is metabolized in different areas of the body, PET enables physicians to map the body's use of the fuel. In order to see the glucose, nuclear medicine physicians attach radioactive tracers to a chemical cousin of glucose. When the mix is injected in a patient, the scanner and computer work together to create an image. Because cancer cells are dividing rapidly, they break down glucose at a much higher rate than most normal cells and the increased activity can show up on a scan. In this way, doctors can see both primary and metastatic tumors. PET scans differ from conventional CAT because this newer test is better able to detect much smaller, microscopic amounts of cancer cells that have been left over after treatment and to verify that a suspicious mass is truly cancer. CAT, on the other hand, is only able to detect larger masses, and only a surgical procedure, or biopsy, can verify that the CAT-detected mass is cancer. A PET scan can verify that even small masses are cancerous because the technique uses a type of sugar, or glucose, that glows. Cancer cells ingest larger amounts of glucose than normal cells, so they glow "hotter" than normal cells. So while CAT can identify suspicious masses based on their size, PET scans can identify masses that are cancerous based on their behavior. PET scans can be used in place of biopsy in some patients suspected of having lung cancer, and helps to guide treatment. "PET allows us to see the metabolism of a tumor," Conti said. "From that we can infer whether it's benign or malignant, if it has spread or whether treatment has been successful. Note: Medicare has agreed to reimburse for PET scans to stage and diagnose lung cancer. The main concern we have is that this test uses radiation; however, the radiation exposure involved is less than that received from many CT Scan Procedures.
Thermography uses thermal imaging which detects new blood vessels and chemical changes associated with a tumor’s genesis and growth. Thermography measures the radiation of infrared heat from our body and translates this information into anatomical images. Thermography offers a very early warning system, often able to pinpoint a cancer process years before it would be detectable by mammography. This approach can detect cancer when they are at a minute physical stage of development, when it is still relatively easy to halt and reverse the progression of the cancer. Most breast tumors have been growing slowly for up to 20 years before they are found by typical diagnostic techniques. When used as part of a multi-modal approach (clinical examination + mammography + thermography) 95% of early stage cancers can be detected. However, thermography does not have the ability to pinpoint the location of a tumor. Consequently, breast thermography's role is in addition to a ultrasound and physical examination. not in lieu of.
T/Tn Antigen Test developed by Dr. Georg Springer can detect the majority of cancers before any biopsy can pick up the presence of cancer. The T and Tn antigens are proteins on the surface of blood and skin cells and can be identified by the immune system antibodies. The concentration of these antigens vary depending on the cancer type and stage. A skin prick can predict or indicate the likely development of cancers, even 6-10 years in advance of other tests. The test appears to successfully diagnosis about 94% of lung cancers and 80% of breast cancers.
New ultrasonic sensor technology being developed at the University of Illinois Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology may permit the rapid and accurate detection and diagnosis of cancer, without the need of a scalpel. By inserting a miniature probe into a tumor and using pulses of sound waves to image the surrounding tissue, this system could facilitate the early diagnosis of cancer. The ultrasonic microprobe would allow a pathologist to accomplish the same goal as a surgical biopsy but through a rapid and minimally invasive procedure - by inserting the probe into a tumor and displaying the image on a monitor, they could identify and classify the tumor in real time and even send the image over the Internet to specific specialists for help in identification. .
Whole Body CT Scans: There are many companies starting to do whole body scans to detect cancers early. These are being touted as "safe". However, the FDA has issued a warning that high-tech computerized body imaging for health screening could be exposing the public to risky levels of radiation. It would be better to consider one of the above tests. However, CT scans can be used to replace standard X-rays.