A Stool Multitarget MRNA Assay for the Detection of Colorectal Neoplasms

Noninvasive screening methods for the detection of colorectal cancers (CRC) at curable stages rely on the identification of specific biomarkers. Our group has shown that mRNA stool assays represent a powerful and robust approach for the prediction of colorectal neoplasms. In this methodological chapter, we describe the procedures to isolate good quality stool RNA and the steps to evaluate the levels of specific host mRNA markers such as ITGA6, MYC, and GADD45B using TaqMan-based quantitative and droplet digital PCR approaches.