Cancer Screening

New results from the PATHFINDER clinical trial suggest that a multicancer early detection blood test can accurately identify the presence of cancer in apparently healthy people. The test, known as Galleri (developed by GRAIL), uses cell-free DNA and machine learning to detect a common cancer signal across more than 50 cancer types as well as to predict cancer signal origin. Once the test is validated and refined further, it may revolutionize the way in which cancer is diagnosed and treated.

A study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention documented an average 38% colorectal cancer (CRC) screening rate among people aged 40 to 49 years, and a 69.7% rate in those aged ?50 years with a first-degree relative with CRC. An earlier analysis of National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) data from 2005 and 2010 showed that first-degree relatives of patients with CRC were 70% more likely to have a colonoscopy than their counterparts.

San Francisco, CA—Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) screening of women who are at average risk for breast cancer had a mean additional cancer diagnosis yield of 15.8 per 1000 patients, surpassing the yields for digital breast tomosynthesis and ultrasound in a new study. The results were presented at the 2015 Breast Cancer Symposium, by Christiane K. Kuhl, MD, Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology, RWTH Aachen University, Germany. This suggests that breast MRI screening alone every 3 years may be sufficient for women at average risk.