Unfortunately, cancers that occur in the back of the mouth and upper throat are often not diagnosed until they become advanced. A new report describes the use of acoustofluidics, a new non-invasive method that analyzes saliva for the presence of human papilloma virus (HPV)-16, the pathogenic strain associated with oropharyngeal cancers (OPCs). This novel technique detected OPC in whole saliva in 40 percent of patients tested and 80% of confirmed OPC patients.
