New Delhi: A new blood test has effectively screened for numerous cancers in people who had not yet manifested any symptoms, which has the potential to revolutionise medical science. As part of a Pathfinder Study, the test was administered to 6,662 people by GRAIL, a healthcare organisation focusing on enhancing cancer detection.
Patients 50 years of age and older were subjected to the test since they have a higher chance of developing cancer. At the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Congress 2022 in Paris, the test findings were revealed.
About 1% of individuals in the research had cancer, including forms for which there is no reliable screening tool. The test’s results have never been published prior to now. Both an earlier version of Galleri (MCED-E) and a more advanced version of Galleri were used to measure the Multi-Cancer Early Detection (MCED) test (MCED-Scr).
The prior iteration of the test, according to researchers, was improved to decrease identification of pre-malignant hematologic disorders, which are rather common, and enhance prediction of the origin of the cancer signal.
“When added to standard of care screening, MCED testing more than doubled the number of cancers detected compared to standard screening alone. In fact, Galleri detected more cancers than all U.S. Preventive Services Task Force-recommended standard single cancer screenings combined. These included Stage I cancers of the liver, small intestine, and uterus, and Stage II pancreatic, bone, and oropharyngeal cancers,” Jeffrey Venstrom, MD, chief medical officer at GRAIL, said in a statement.
35 participants out of 92 patients who had the cancer signal were diagnosed with 36 different types of cancer. According to the business, 71% of participants had cancer forms for which there is no available regular cancer screening.