Ajay Goel, PhD, director of Epigenetics and Cancer Prevention at Baylor Research Institute

A new blood test developed in the Gastrointestinal Cancer Research Lab at Baylor Research Institute is showing very promising results for finding cancer-related microRNA in the blood before a tumor develops in the colon. The test results, published in the current issue (Volume 105 Issue 12 June 19, 2013) of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, are exciting and promising because this simple blood-based test examines the levels of a single microRNA – a small RNA molecule that can be readily identified in a wide variety of bodily fluids, including blood.