Exhaled breath biomarkers for screening and monitoring of mesothelioma and lung cancer

Prof Kevin Lamote from the University of Antwerp researches using exhaled breath’s volatile organic compounds as biomarkers for detecting mesothelioma and lung cancer.

Malignant pleural mesothelioma is a type of aggressive thoracic cancer. Sadly, it is often diagnosed at an advanced stage, leading to poor patient outcomes. However, early detection can potentially improve a patient’s chances of recovery. Researchers have been exploring the use of volatile organic compounds found in exhaled breath as a non-invasive way to diagnose this disease. Professor Lamote’s research group has been investigating the effectiveness of a breath test to screen an asbestos-exposed population for pleural mesothelioma. In addition, further research discovered that analysing exhaled breath could also be a promising method of predicting therapy outcomes for patients with pleural mesothelioma.

Exhaled breath analysis is a promising screening tool for lung cancer, as demonstrated in the LuCID study. This multicenter trial aimed to detect lung cancer biomarkers via a breath biopsy. The study showed that exhaled breath analysis has the potential to identify lung cancer at an early stage. Additionally, the evolution study, a proof-of-mechanism study, evaluated the administration of a specific probe compound to detect tumour-associated extracellular β-glucuronidase. This probe compound produced a unique exogenous volatile organic compound (EVOC) on breath, which could be used as a diagnostic tool for lung cancer. Another promising method presented at the World Conference on Lung Cancer (WCLC) is a test to identify non-smokers at high risk for lung cancer by analysing volatile organic compounds in exhaled breath after administration of peppermint oil.

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