Scientists at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and their colleagues have discovered a new class of biomarkers for early cancer detection: microRNAs (small RNA molecules that regulate gene expression) released by cancer cells into the blood.

MicroRNAs have some advantages over protein-based early-detection systems: they could be detected in smaller quantities and the technology exists to rapidly develop microRNA-based tests.

See Also One-third of human genome regulated by RNA: study

Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center News Release