New Blood Test That Can Detect Cancer Has Been Developed

Hardly a person on the planet has not been impacted in some way by cancer.  Finally there may be a way to get ahead of the curve. A group of scientists have developed a simple blood test that say can detect cancer.

According to Fox News in as little as 10 minutes this test can detect fragment of DNA in a persons blood that are from cancer tumors. They are claiming accuracy of 90%. This research comes from Queensland University in Australia.

Their hopes are that one day screening for cancer will be a part of a regular physical like looking for cholesterol or blood pressure issues.

Unfortunately these findings are considered preliminary and won't be available to the public for a few years.

Currently there are blood tests which are used to help doctors diagnose cancer, but they are dependent on the physician knowing the type in order to use the appropriate test.

Most often used as a diagnosis tool is MRI scan technology. Again this method can fall short  as experts say it tends to miss small tumors  making it more of a confirmation than a preventative course of action.

The article cites that ,

About nine in 10 cancer deaths involve a diagnosis that came too late.

The test described in Nature Communications exploits the differences between the DNA in cancerous and healthy cells to allow for a quick, early diagnosis.