A Single Blood Test Could Detect 50 Different Types of Cancer

It’s a stunning reality that in our lifetimes, nearly 40% of us may experience some form of cancer. There are many different types of cancer, and all of them can be life-threatening. And we know that the more advanced the cancer is when found, the worse the chances most of the time. What if we could detect cancer earlier and with less invasive procedures? Well, that's about to be a reality. Now, a new blood test could detect up to 50 different cancer types with a single blood draw. Here’s what we know.

Not All Cancers Have Recommended Screening Options

Even though cancer is a serious and potentially deadly illness, many variations don’t have any recommended screening options. In other words, because we don’t routinely screen for these types of cancers, they may go undetected until they start to cause very obvious problems. Once they become symptomatic and cause health problems, we may discover them, but by then it may be too late to obtain effective treatment.

Many people who have cancer don’t have symptoms, especially if the cancer is in its early stages. But early screening may allow discovery before the cancer ever causes symptoms. Not only might that mean earlier treatment, but it may also mean a chance for less invasive options and better chances for a cure.

This Test May Revolutionize Cancer Screening

The new test, which is called Galleri, relies on a single blood draw. It’s completely revolutionary.

Current screening tests are only available for five main types of cancer, and each of those five cancers requires a separate test. (Think colonoscopies and mammograms.) Yet, over 70% of cancer deaths come from cancers that don’t have specific or recommended screening tests.

Late-stage cancer diagnoses, those often found in Stage 3 or 4, might be reduced by two-thirds using the Galleri test. That would potentially reduce 5-year cancer deaths by 26%. In short, this screening test has the potential to save hundreds of thousands of lives every year.

How the Galleri Test Detects 50 Cancer Types

Scientists working on the chromosomal abnormalities that may occur in children by studying the blood of pregnant women stumbled onto the discovery that cancers caused specific DNA abnormalities. By looking at these specific abnormalities and what types of cancers they related to, the scientists learned something very valuable.

DNA provides information about the existence of cancer and indicates where in the body the cancer is located with excellent accuracy. Looking at the DNA markers enables scientists to develop information doctors can use, so they can screen their patients for cancers that may otherwise continue to grow undetected. 

The Galleri test is now available in the United States, and doctors may prescribe or order it the way they would order other blood work for their patients. Screenings save lives, and adding this new testing option to the current screenings already offered may potentially change the game where cancer detection is concerned.

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