Salivary biomarkers in breast cancer: a cross-sectional study

Aim The objective was to evaluate the diagnostic value of salivary biomarkers in breast cancer. Materials and methods A prospective study was carried out of 91 consecutive breast cancer patients and 60 controls without neoplastic disease. Demographic data were recorded, along with the Hospital Anxiety Depression (HAD), risk for development periodontal diseases questionnaire and Mini-Nutritional Assessment (MNA) scores, and the TNM classification and stage of the primary tumor. Unstimulated basal saliva samples were collected and stored at - 80 degrees C until analysis. Results The mean salivary CA125 concentration was 102.1 pg/ml in the control group and 267.6 pg/ml in the breast cancer group (p = 0.005). The soluble Fas (sFas) concentration in turn was 84.1 pg/ml and 145.9 pg/ml, respectively (p = 0.008). None of the biomarkers was related to questionnaire-assessed risk for development of periodontal diseases. The area under the ROC curve was 0.68 for CA125 (95% CI, 0.05-0.56) and 0.67 for sFas (95% CI, 0.08-0.55). Conclusions The salivary biomarkers CA125 and sFas appear to be promising tools in the diagnosis of breast cancer.

Automated summary

The study evaluated the diagnostic value of salivary biomarkers in breast cancer patients compared to controls without neoplastic disease, revealing that CA125 and sFas are potentially promising tools for breast cancer diagnosis.