Analyzing Exhaled Breath May Help Detect Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma

Analyzing the exhaled breath of patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) shows tremendous potential as a screening tool, according to research presented at the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer 2023 World Conference on Lung Cancer in Singapore.

MPM is difficult to treat, with limited treatment options and a poor prognosis. In an attempt to enhance treatment of the disease, researchers have focused on exploring predictive markers. Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in exhaled breath may be a potential noninvasive marker for the disease.

In this study, Kevin Lamote, PhD, and colleagues assessed 13 patients with MPM. Patients received a computed tomography scan before treatment and every 3 months following. Treatment responses were scored as either stable disease (SD) or progressive disease (PD) based on the modified Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors. Breath and background samples were collected from the patients at each time point using multicapillary column-ion mobility spectrometry to characterize VOCs. Researchers performed a lasso regression to identify VOCs that could differentiate between responders and nonresponders following treatment. They trained a predictive model to forecast treatment outcomes based on associated breath samples from previous study visits.

The study demonstrated a high accuracy of 89% in distinguishing between patients with SD and those with PD. At baseline, the predictive model achieved the same level of accuracy in predicting treatment outcomes, the investigators noted. Importantly, there were no significant differences observed in treatment approaches between patients with SD and those with PD, suggesting that the selected VOCs may be involved in disease mechanisms or linked to the tumor microenvironment rather than being treatment specific.

“The identification of VOCs in exhaled breath represents a promising opportunity for noninvasive detection and prediction of treatment outcomes in MPM patients,” said Dr. Lamote via a press release. “However, to further validate the utility of the VOC profile, larger population studies are required. Fine-tuning the VOC profile for each treatment could also help predict which patients are most likely to benefit from specific therapies, ultimately leading to improved overall treatment regimens for MPM.”