A team of researchers at Rowan University have made a monumental step in being able to detect the early stages of Parkinson's disease — the key to successful treatment.
Rowan Univeristy students Cassandra DeMarshall and Abhirup Sarkar standing behind Dr. Robert Nagele, of the Rowan School of Osteopathic Medicine. Nagele's team of researchers recently conducted a study showing that a blood test they developed can detect the early stages of Parkinson's disease. (Submitted Photo)GLASSBORO -- By the time a patient shows physical signs of Parkinson's disease, it's typically too late -- there's been too much damage to avoid the debilitating symptoms associated with the disease.
The irony is, the way in which the disease is currently diagnosed is by these clinical symptoms, like tremors, rigid muscles, impaired balance and movement and speech, to name a few. The disease itself is not fatal, but the symptoms can be.
Therefore, the key -- like so many diseases -- is early detection.
Researchers from the Rowan University School of Osteopathic Medicine and New Brunswick-based Durin Technologies Inc. believe they have uncovered a monumental breakthrough that would detect the early stages of the disease.
It's a simple blood test that could potentially ward off a patients' symptoms years before the appearance of any physical signs.
The yearlong study, which has not yet been published, was led by Robert Nagele, Ph.D., the director of the Biomarker Discovery Center at Rowan University's New Jersey Institute for Successful Aging. His team was made up of mostly medical students at Rowan.
There is currently no cure for the disease or a standard, reliable test. If the study is eventually put into practice, it could dramatically revolutionize the way Parkinson's is detected and also monitored.
Using human protein microarrays, the researchers "identified a panel of blood-born autoantibodies that act as potential biomarkers to detect early-stage Parkinson's disease." According to the study, the test shows an overall accuracy of nearly 90 percent -- a massive improvement from today's detection methods that primarily rely on clinical observation of patients' symptoms, which according to Nagele, is accurate about 75 percent of the time.
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In a statement about the study this week, Nagele said, "An accurate, inexpensive and relatively non-invasive test for early-stage Parkinson's could have a profound impact that leads to earlier treatment of patients and allow for early enrollment of patients into clinical trials."
"There's a reason that this changes the game," Nagele said in a telephone interview this week. "If you have a test where you can detect (years) before symptoms appear," the chances of a patient responding to treatment vastly increases.
Nagele added that it would also allow doctors to distinguish the different stages of the disease and its severity and make it easier to monitor patients' progression and response to mediation and therapies.
The study, which cost between $5 million and $6 million, was partially funded by the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research.
Catherine Kopil, Ph.D., senior associate director of research programs at the foundation commended the study, but noting that replication will be vital.
A patient showing no signs of Parkinson's could one day go in for an annual physical and have blood taken to test whether he or she has early stages of the disease.
Dr. Keith Preis, a neurologist in Cherry Hill with 15 years in treating Parkinson's and other neurological disorders, said though Parkinson's disease itself does not kill, the complications associated with the disease can -- like falling and other risks associated with impaired body movement.
Preis says patients often "don't realize they have it until it's full blown." Earlier detection, he added, means "We can get them on medication soon" and prevent falls and other associated risks.
About one million people in the U.S. have the progressive disease that's caused when the brain stops producing dopamine -- a neurotransmitter that controls body movement.
By the time physical symptoms show, roughly 50 percent of the neurons in the part of the brain that produces dopamine have already died, Nagele said.
"A lot of damage is already done by the first time you see (signs). The earlier you can treat it, the better the outcome," Nagele said.
"Anything you can do to slow down the disease, the better. It's a quality of life issue," he added.
Doctors could be using the diagnostics test as early as three years from now.
Nagele said already many people have shown interest in financing the study for further development. The next step is finding a financial partner to provide funding toward getting approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Most of the cost associated with the study goes toward trying to get FDA approval, an expensive and scrupulous process.
"It's a big deal for the university to get this type of recognition," Nagele said. "People will ask, 'Where was this done?' -- Rowan."
Spencer Kent may be reached at skent@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @SpencerMKent. Find the South Jersey Times on Facebook.