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Prediction of breast cancer using volatile biomarkers in the breath

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Summary

We evaluated a breath test for volatile organic compounds (VOCs) as a predictor of breast cancer. Breath VOCs were assayed in 51 asymptomatic women with abnormal mammograms and biopsy-proven breast cancer, and 42 age-matched healthy women. A fuzzy logic model predicted breast cancer with accuracy superior to previously reported findings. Following random assignment to a training set (64) or a prediction set (29), a model was constructed in the training set employing five breath VOCs that predicted breast cancer in the prediction set with 93.8% sensitivity and 84.6% specificity. The same model predicted no breast cancer in 16/50 (32.0%) women with abnormal mammograms and no cancer on biopsy. A two-minute breath test could potentially provide a safe, accurate and painless screening test for breast cancer, but prospective validation studies are required.

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Acknowledgements

This research was supported by STTR grant 1 R41CA81842-01 from the National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health. This report has not been reviewed by the National Institutes of Health.

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Correspondence to Michael Phillips.

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Michael Phillips MD, FACP was the principal investigator who coordinated the study.

Renee N. Cataneo MA analyzed all breath samples in the laboratory.

Beth Ann Ditkoff MD recruited patients with abnormal mammograms for the study.

Peter Fisher MD and C. Stephan Kwon MD reviewed the microscopic pathology of the breast biopsies.

Joel Greenberg BS and Olaf Tietje PhD analyzed the data.

Ratnasiri Gunawardena MD collected breath samples from subjects.

Cynthia Wong MD recruited normal controls and patients with abnormal mammograms for the study.

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Phillips, M., Cataneo, R.N., Ditkoff, B.A. et al. Prediction of breast cancer using volatile biomarkers in the breath. Breast Cancer Res Treat 99, 19–21 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10549-006-9176-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10549-006-9176-1

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