Scientists have developed a process that could change everything in the care of patients suffering from cancer. According to a study presented on Sunday at the congress of the European Society of Medical Oncology (ESMO), which was held in Paris, a simple blood test could detect up to 50 types of cancer on patients with no symptomse of the disease, as reported by the Catalan daily El Periodico.
The principle is simple: it is a blood sample detecting the presence of tumor DNA circulating in the blood, thus identifying all the genetic alterations of cancer cells. Once the test is done, it takes an average of two months to confirm the diagnosis.
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Early detection
The work was carried out by oncologists at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) in New York and is based on the analysis of tests carried out on 6,621 people over the age of 50 who did not show symptoms of any cancer. Signs of cancer were detected in 1.4% of them. Of these 1.4%, 62% were unaware they even had a tumour.
With this new study, researchers are hopeful that early detection of cancer makes it possible to treat more effectively and thus reduce disease-related mortality.
Deployed on a large scale, this type of test could be all the more useful as it makes it possible to detect cancers such as that of the pancreas, the small intestine or even the stomach, for which there are currently no other screening options.
?Un análisis de sangre podría detectar el cáncer antes de que aparezcan síntomas.
El hallazgo abre una nueva era en la detección precoz. Hasta 50 tipos de cancer podrían detectarse así, según une investigación presentada este domingo en París.https://t.co/XKiwnjjcje
— La Vanguardia (@LaVanguardia) September 11, 2022