Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most common type of cancer and the fourth most common cause of cancer death in the world. Although the implementation of creening tests for CRC is in full swing, and the survival rate has risen during the last thirty ears, only about 40-44% of cancers are detected in the early stage, which is due to the limitations of existing tests. If the cancer is diagnosed in the early stage (I or II), the survival of patients is significantly higher compared to detection in later stage (III or IV). This indicates that early detection of CRC is extremely important and necessary. Current screening tests (especially fecal immunochemical test - FIT) have lower sensitivity for early stage CRC and low patient compliance, which means there is a great need to improve existing screening tests. Altered metabolism is one of typical signs of cancer, which can be seen as changes of specific signal pathways. Metabolites are final products of cellular processes, and their concentrations reflect the functioning of organism and are closely related to the phenotypic, which means metabolites are suitable biological markers for the detection of cancers. As part of this study, it has been shown that specific metabolic profile of the serum can be used to distinguish between patients with CRC, adenomatous polyps and healthy patients. However, to use such a test in clinical practice, multicentre clinical validation study on an asymptomatic population has to be completed. Such clinical validation will determine the actual accuracy of the screening test and will show the potential for introduction of the test into the healthcare system.
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