In the study, Califano asked volunteers to brush the insides of their mouths, then rinse and gargle with a salt solution. Researchers filtered cells from the rinsed saliva to look for any of 21 bits of chemically altered genes associated with head and neck cancer. The test was given to 211 people with head and neck cancer and 527 healthy volunteers.
The study, published Jan. 1 in Clinical Cancer Research, was funded by the National Cancer Institute and the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research. The work is an important step toward cutting cancer deaths, experts say.
"The science is interesting; it certainly is cutting edge, and we think this is where the future of cancer testing is going to be," Lichtenfeld said.
Scientists elsewhere are developing saliva tests to detect HIV, Alzheimer's disease, rheumatoid arthritis, osteoporosis, Type II diabetes and other cancers.
"It's the future of cancer diagnosis," said Dr. Feng Jiang, an assistant professor of pathology at the University of Maryland School of Medicine developing a lung cancer test from sputum.
In the study, researchers were able to identify more than half the people with cancer. But since the report was published, Califano said, he has pinpointed alterations in three additional genes that will make it possible to detect head and neck cancer in up to 90 percent of cases.
No test is 100 percent accurate, but Califano is designing a kit for doctor's offices to screen high-risk patients. He anticipates that it will be available in a few years.
"If these markers work as well as I think they will, we'll have a product out there relatively quickly," he said.
Those at high risk are people older than 50 who are heavy drinkers and smokers, as well as people with a previous history of head and neck cancer.
Moffett hadn't smoked for decades and had no family history of cancer. He suspects his cancer was linked to exposure to Agent Orange in Vietnam.
Researchers determined in 2003 that some 21 million gallons of the Agent Orange defoliant were sprayed in Vietnam between 1961 to 1971. Named for the color of the identification band on its containers, the defoliant was made with toxic compounds that have been linked to cancers, neurological disorders, miscarriages and birth defects.
Moffett, a father of two and a grandfather of two, cannot be sure that exposure to Agent Orange caused his cancer, but several members of his aviation unit have also developed various cancers.
But he is glad to be alive. When he was initially diagnosed with cancer four years ago, he was given a 50 percent chance of survival, he said. He is now cancer-free.
"I have no symptoms at all of cancer. It's marvelous. I thank the good Lord for all the prayers I received," he said.
dennis.obrien@baltsun.com
Did you know?
Each of us produces about 3 pints of saliva a day.
In addition to doctors trying to use the liquid to detect cancer, saliva is vital to digestion and dental hygiene.
Without saliva, swallowing would be nearly impossible, and we wouldn't be able to taste our food.
Eating and kissing stimulate the salivary glands.
Foods with high amounts of salt and sugar are linked to the production of higher levels of saliva.
Standing or lying creates more saliva than sitting.
[[Sources: Encyclopedia Britannica,Kidshealth.org, American DentalAssociation]]
