New blood test detects cancers 3 years before typical diagnosis, study hints

New blood test detects cancers 3 years before typical diagnosis, study hints

Free-floating DNA carrying cancerous mutations was detected in blood three years before any other signs of cancer appeared. If approved as a test, doctors might detect cancers sooner and treat them before they spread.

The ‘Shield’ is a new blood test for the detection of 8 cancer types - Knox TN Today

This month, the FDA gave “Breakthrough Device Designation” to a new blood test by Guardian Health for detection of eight tumor types: colorectal, lung, liver, pancreatic, ovarian, esophageal, gastric and bladder. The test detects what is known as circulating tumor DNA, that is, pieces of DNA from dead cancer cells that can be found in the blood. Like all breakthroughs, there’s good and bad news. The good news: If the test was positive, it was r…