Methods for detecting early cancer
First Claim
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1. A method of screening for early cancer, comprising the steps of:
- (a) measuring the level of full-length human midkine, or a fragment thereof, in a body fluid;
(b) comparing the measured level obtained in (a) to a control human midkine protein level of a healthy subject; and
(c) diagnosing the presence of early cancer, defined as stage 0 or stage I of the TNM classification, when the comparison of (b) indicates that the measured level is elevated as compared to the control level.
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Abstract
MK (midkine) was found to rise in the blood or urine of patients with various types of cancers at early stage. Based on this finding, a method for detecting early cancer, comprising the step of measuring MK in blood or urine was completed.
75 Citations
13 Claims
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1. A method of screening for early cancer, comprising the steps of:
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(a) measuring the level of full-length human midkine, or a fragment thereof, in a body fluid; (b) comparing the measured level obtained in (a) to a control human midkine protein level of a healthy subject; and (c) diagnosing the presence of early cancer, defined as stage 0 or stage I of the TNM classification, when the comparison of (b) indicates that the measured level is elevated as compared to the control level. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 12)
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9. A method of screening for early cancer comprising the steps of:
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(a) contacting a body fluid with a pair of antibodies that specifically bind to full-length human midkine, or a fragment thereof, in a body fluid; (b) comparing the level of binding between the antibodies and human midkine of (a) to a control binding level of a healthy subject; and (c) diagnosing the presence of early cancer, defined as stage 0 or stage I of the TNM classification, when the comparison of (b) indicates that the measured level is elevated as compared to the control level.
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10. A method for assessing cancer prognosis, comprising the steps of:
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(a) measuring the level of full-length human midkine, or a fragment thereof, in a body fluid both before and after tumor treatment, comparing the level measured after treatment to a level measured before treatment, and (b) correlating a difference in the measured levels to cancer prognosis, wherein a reduction in the measured level after treatment is indicative of successful treatment and positive prognosis. - View Dependent Claims (11, 13)
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Specification