Norwegian researchers have found that children with cancer were more likely to carry antibodies targeting six DNA-repair proteins, raising a possible explanation for some childhood cancers—but not proving the antibodies cause disease.
In a peer-reviewed study, the team analyzed blood samples from 375 patients and healthy people, finding higher levels of these IgG autoantibodies among children with cancer than among healthy peers and older participants. The antibodies targeted RAD52, NUMA1, ALKBH7, APBB1, UNG and MGMT, proteins involved in DNA repair. The researchers also examined stored samples from 59 children in two British health studies; about half later developed cancer, and the group that went on to become ill had elevated antibodies years before diagnosis.
Lab tests found that IgG antibodies could enter living cells and showed a pattern of localization that led the team to suggest they might interfere with repair proteins. But the study did not establish that the antibodies actually disrupt DNA repair in a child’s body or trigger cancer, and the pre-diagnosis comparison was small. The findings point to a research lead, not a validated screening test or a basis for predicting an individual child’s cancer risk.