New Biomarkers for Colorectal Cancer Diagnosis Offer Promising Results

Strategic Insights -

Researchers from National Taipei University of Technology have successfully identified three biomarkers for colorectal cancer diagnosis using DNA methylation analysis. According to the study, published in Cancer Informatics, the biomarkers exhibited remarkable classification performance, showing a Matthews correlation coefficient of .85 and an F1-score of .9. These findings suggest that the biomarkers can be used to design a practical clinical toolkit for CRC diagnosis assistance and may serve as candidate biomarkers for further clinical experiments through liquid biopsies.

Key Takeaways:

  • Researchers from National Taipei University of Technology identified three biomarkers for colorectal cancer diagnosis using DNA methylation analysis.
  • The biomarkers, ADHFE1, ADAMTS5, and MIR129-2, showed significant methylation differences in both tissue and blood samples.
  • The 3-gene combinations achieved outstanding classification performance, with a Matthews correlation coefficient of .85 and an F1-score of .9.
  • The biomarkers can be used to design a practical clinical toolkit for CRC diagnosis assistance.
  • The biomarkers may serve as candidate biomarkers for further clinical experiments through liquid biopsies.
  • The study integrated DNA methylation profiles from The Cancer Genome Atlas and comorbidity patterns of CRC to select biomarker candidates.
  • The researchers used machine learning techniques to construct models and compare their prediction performances.

Statistics:

  • The three biomarkers, ADHFE1, ADAMTS5, and MIR129-2, exhibited a Matthews correlation coefficient of .85 and an F1-score of .9.
  • The biomarkers showed significant methylation differences in both tissue and blood samples.
  • The study used DNA methylation analysis to identify the biomarkers.
  • The Cancer Genome Atlas provided the DNA methylation profiles used in the study.

Sources:

  • Tsai, Y-H, et al. (2020). DNA Methylation Biomarker Discovery for Colorectal Cancer Diagnosis Assistance Through Integrated Analysis. Cancer Informatics, 24. doi: 10.1177/11769351251324545
  • SAGE Publishing. (n.d.). Cancer Informatics. Retrieved from
  • NewsRx. (2025). Data from National Taipei University of Technology Provide New Insights into Colon Cancer (DNA Methylation Biomarker Discovery for Colorectal Cancer Diagnosis Assistance Through Integrated Analysis). Cancer Weekly. May 13, 2025; p 9.