#ASCO17: Could a Blood Test Detect Early-Stage Cancers? | Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

#ASCO17: Could a Blood Test Detect Early-Stage Cancers? | Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

#ASCO17: Could a Blood Test Detect Early-Stage Cancers?

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By Matthew Tontonoz, 

Saturday, June 3, 2017

Summary

Sophisticated laboratory assays for detecting and sequencing small amounts of DNA are revolutionizing biology and medicine. At ASCO, the world’s largest cancer meeting, scientists from MSK are reporting that a new and highly sensitive genomic sequencing assay can be used to detect small amounts of tumor DNA in the blood. These results lay the groundwork for a diagnostic cancer blood test.

Highlights

• Small amounts of tumor DNA are present in the blood of people with cancer.
• A sensitive genomic assay detected cancer-specific mutations in the blood of people with breast, lung, and prostate cancers.
• In 89% of cases in the study, at least one of the mutations identified in a patient’s tumor tissue was also found in the blood.
• These results are an important first step toward the development of blood tests for early cancer detection.