Use of Sensor Array Analysis to Detect Ovarian Cancer through Breath, Urine, and Blood: A Case-Control Study
Roberto Angioli,
Marco Santonico,
Giorgio Pennazza,
Roberto Montera,
Daniela Luvero,
Alessandra Gatti,
Alessandro Zompanti,
Panaiotis Finamore,
Raffaele Antonelli Incalzi
Affiliations
Roberto Angioli
Unit of Gynecology, University Campus Bio-Medico of Rome, Via Alvaro del Portillo 200, 00128 Rome, Italy
Marco Santonico
Unit of Electronics for Sensor Systems, Department of Science and Technology for Sustainable Development and One Health, University Campus Bio-Medico of Rome, Via Alvaro del Portillo 21, 00128 Rome, Italy
Giorgio Pennazza
Unit of Electronics for Sensor Systems, Department of Engineering, University Campus Bio-Medico of Rome, Via Alvaro del Portillo 21, 00128 Rome, Italy
Roberto Montera
Unit of Gynecology, University Campus Bio-Medico of Rome, Via Alvaro del Portillo 200, 00128 Rome, Italy
Daniela Luvero
Unit of Gynecology, University Campus Bio-Medico of Rome, Via Alvaro del Portillo 200, 00128 Rome, Italy
Alessandra Gatti
Unit of Gynecology, University Campus Bio-Medico of Rome, Via Alvaro del Portillo 200, 00128 Rome, Italy
Alessandro Zompanti
Unit of Electronics for Sensor Systems, Department of Engineering, University Campus Bio-Medico of Rome, Via Alvaro del Portillo 21, 00128 Rome, Italy
Panaiotis Finamore
Unit of Geriatrics, University Campus Bio-Medico of Rome, Via Alvaro del Portillo 200, 00128 Rome, Italy
Raffaele Antonelli Incalzi
Unit of Geriatrics, University Campus Bio-Medico of Rome, Via Alvaro del Portillo 200, 00128 Rome, Italy
Ovarian cancer (OC) is the eighth most common cancer in women. Since screening programs do not exist, it is often diagnosed in advanced stages. Today, the detection of OC is based on clinical examination, transvaginal ultrasound (US), and serum biomarker (Carbohydrate Antigen 125 (CA 125) and Human Epididymis Protein 4 (HE4)) dosage, with a sensitivity of 88% and 95%, respectively, and a specificity of 84% for US and 76% for biomarkers. These methods are clearly not enough, and OC in its early stages is often missed. Many scientists have recently focused their attention on volatile organic compounds (VOCs). These are gaseous molecules, found in the breath, that could provide interesting information on several diseases, including solid tumors. To detect VOCs, an electronic nose was invented by a group of researchers. A similar device, the e-tongue, was later created to detect specific molecules in liquids. For the first time in the literature, we investigated the potential use of the electronic nose and the electronic tongue to detect ovarian cancer not just from breath but also from urine, blood, and plasma samples.
