Staging of colorectal cancer using serum metabolomics with 1HNMR Spectroscopy

OBJECTIVES Determination of stages of colon cancer is done by biopsy usually after surgery. Metabolomics is the study of all the metabolites using LC-MS and 1HNMR spectroscopy with chemometric techniques. The stages of colon cancer were detected from patients' sera using 1HNMR. MATERIALS AND METHODS Five ml blood was collected from 16 confirmed patients referred for colonoscopy. One group of eight patients were diagnosed with stage 0 to I colon cancer and the second group of 8 patients with II-IV stage colon cancer. Sera were sent for 1HNMR. The differentiating metabolites were identified using HMDB and the metabolic cycles from Metaboanalyst. RESULTS Six metabolites of which pyridoxine levels lowered, and glycine, cholesterol, taurocholic acid, cholesteryl ester and deoxyinosine increased. CONCLUSION The different stages of cancer were identified by the main metabolic cycles such as primary bile acid biosynthesis, purine and vitamin B metabolic pathways and the glutathione cycle.