Blueprint of quartz crystal microbalance biosensor for early detection of breast cancer through salivary autoantibodies against ATP6AP1

• Detection of breast cancer at an early stage has reported to increase the survival chances of the patients.
• The blueprint of a device for early detection of breast cancer, based on biosensor technology has been proposed.
• The concept lies on the fact that the patients developing cancer produce autoantibodies in their serum and saliva against the cancerous tissues.
• ATP6AP1, a breast cancer specific biomarker could be immobilized on the sensing chips of quartz crystal biosensor, which quantifies the signal of autoantibodies against it in saliva.

Breast cancer represents a significant health problem because of its high prevalence. Tests like mammography, which are used abundantly for the detection of breast cancer, suffer from serious limitations. Mammography correctly detects malignancy about 80–90% of the times, failing in places when (1) the tumor is small at early stage, (2) breast tissue is dense or (3) in women of less than 40 years. Serum-based detection of biomarkers involves risk of disease transfer, along with other concerns. These techniques compromise in the early detection of breast cancer. Early detection of breast cancer is a crucial factor to enhance the survival rate of patient. Development of regular screening tests for early diagnosis of breast cancer is a challenge. This review highlights the design of a handy and household biosensor device aimed for self-screening and early diagnosis of breast cancer. The design makes use of salivary autoantibodies for specificity to develop a noninvasive procedure, breast cancer specific biomarkers for precision for the development of device, and biosensor technology for sensitivity to screen the early cases of breast cancer more efficiently.