Patent ID: 7288413

Claim:
A method of determining whether hemoglobin is present in a fecal sample, comprising the steps of: (a) applying the sample to an absorbent matrix material: (b) contacting the sample with one or more chemical reagents capable of chemically reacting with hemoglobin in the sample, wherein the one or more chemical reagents comprise guaiaconic acid; (c) contacting the sample and the guaiaconic acid in the absorbent matrix material with an oxidizing agent, thereby producing an indicator of the presence of hemoglobin in the sample; (d) detecting the indicator in the absorbent matrix material; (e) after step (d), placing a portion of the sample in which the indicator is detected in liquid communication with a first specific binding partner for hemoglobin, wherein the first specific binding partner is present in a chromatographic material; and (f) detecting binding of the first specific binding partner to hemoglobin in the chromatographic material in order to determine whether hemoglobin is present in the sample.