Team develops cancer prediction method using inside of cheek

If brought into practical use, the method could facilitate early cancer detection and cancer prevention through lifestyle improvements.

The team's findings were published in an online international medical journal in April.

Its study covered 222 people aged 40-94, all with a history of smoking and drinking habits who were either esophageal cancer patients or did not have such cancer.

The team swabbed the inside of their cheeks to extract cheek mucosa cells and analyzed genetic mutations.

Participants with a lower tolerance for alcohol showed a rise in the number of genetic mutations in their extracted cells when their alcoholic intake increased.

On the other hand, those whose bodies were capable of processing alcohol well did not display such an increase.

The team also found that esophageal cancer patients had more genetic mutations than those that did not have such a health issue, even if their cancer was discovered at an early stage.

The team managed to make cancer probability predictions with an accuracy of over 70 pct by analyzing various genetic mutation data together.

The team found "what is believed to be a biomarker that indicates (cancer) risks more objectively and accurately than with the conventional method of interviewing (patients) on their lifestyle habits and predispositions," said team member Akira Yokoyama, lecturer at Kyoto University Hospital.