Washington:US researchers have found a possible new method of diagnosing breast cancer, simply using a saliva sample from patients.

According to research published in the latest issue of General Dentistry, researchers found that the protein levels in saliva have great potential to assist in the diagnosis, treatment and follow-up care of breast cancer.

And general dentists are perfect candidates to assist with these diagnosis samples because they can easily remove saliva from a patient's mouth during routine visits.

Salivary testing has some advantages over blood testing, the report said. Saliva is a clear, colourless liquid, while blood undergoes changes in colour, which might affect test results. Saliva collection is safe, no needle punctures, non-invasive, and can be collected without causing a patient any pain.

One of the researchers said: "If the salivary screening did show a positive result, a mammogram or other imaging test would be necessary to determine in which breast the cancer was located."

Breast cancer is the second leading cause of death among women in the US.