The Blood Test that detects 8 types of cancer

The test, called CancerSEEK, is a unique, non-invasive one and evaluates simultaneously the level of eight proteins produced by cancer cells as well as the presence in the blood DNA of some carcinogenic genetic mutations. The test is done to detect eight common types of cancer that are responsible for the death of more than 60% of US cancer patients. Five of the eight cancers currently have no screening method. The results of the research were published online by Science magazine on January 16th. Researchers initially studied several hundred genes and 40 protein markers, reducing their number to a segment of 16 genes and eight proteins. They stressed that this test is for screening only and is therefore different from other molecular tests that are based on the analysis of a large number of genes that can cause cancer and identify therapeutic patterns.

In this study, the test had 99% specificity for cancer. The test was applied to a control group of 812 healthy people and there were only seven false positive results. The test was applied to 1005 patients with non-metastatic, grade I to III non-metastatic cancer of the ovary, liver, stomach, pancreas, esophagus, colorectal, lung and breast. The average sensitivity for cancer screening was 70%, reaching 98% for ovarian cancer and only 33% for breast cancer. For five types of cancer for which there were no screening tests - ovarian, liver, stomach, pancreas, and esophagus - detection sensitivity was between 69 and 98%.

Early detection leads to a higher success rate in healing. Optimally, cancers are detected early enough to be surgically cured, but even those that can not be cured only surgically will respond better to therapies than some advanced ones,