Researchers at the University of Missouri are working on a new way to see which cancer patients will benefit most from targeted drugs. They use a special glow in medical scans to spot tumors.
Barry Edwards, a professor of biochemistry, built a very small antibody that hunts for a protein called EphA2. This protein shows up often in cancer tumors. He attached a tiny radioactive tag to the antibody so it can be seen during a PET scan.
Antibody Works Like a Flashlight
In mouse tests, the antibody lit up tumors that had EphA2, like a flashlight in the dark. The bright signal helps doctors know if a tumor contains this protein. That information can tell them whether a treatment aimed at EphA2 will work, while protecting healthy tissue.
Edwards explained, “If we know how much EphA2 a patient has, we can pick the right treatment. Giving a drug that won’t work wastes time and money. This new method helps move precision medicine forward.”
Quicker and Less Invasive
Right now, doctors rely on biopsies and MRI scans, which can be painful, take a long time, and often do not reveal the exact proteins inside cancer cells. Edwards uses advanced imaging at Mizzou’s Molecular Imaging and Theranostics Center and hopes to move this test from animal studies to human trials within seven years.
He added, “The new approach does not need surgery, and the scan results appear in hours, not days. That can be a huge help for patients who travel far for care. Making the process faster and easier benefits both patients and doctors, showing that precision medicine is a win‑win.”
The research, titled “Preclinical evaluation of anti‑EphA2 minibody‑based immunoPET agent as a diagnostic tool for cancer,” was published in Molecular Imaging and Biology.