Australian researchers say they've zeroed in on four new biomarkers that could enable a simple blood test for the early diagnosis of stomach cancer, far earlier and more precise than existing standards of care. The University of Adelaide team said the proteins--afamin, clusterin, haptoglobin and vitamin D binding protein--each worked better than using the standard CA72-4 as a biomarker to distinguish patients with stomach cancer from healthy controls. They found differences in those four protein levels in blood samples from 37 gastric cancer patients, including 11 with early stage cancer. Details are published in the journal Biochimica et Biophysica Acta. Release | Journal abstract
