Single Blood Test Could Screen for Several Cancers

A laboratory test that can screen for multiple cancer types from a single blood sample could be developed after hundreds of compounds have been identified in the blood of cancer patients.

All cancers produce compounds that end up in the bloodstream, so it is feasible that such blood markers could form the basis of a general screening test for many different forms of cancer.


Scientist led by those at the University of Warwick Medical School (Coventry, UK) conducted a systematic mapping review to establish what biomarkers exist that could be used to develop a general cancer screening assay from blood sampling and what is their state of development. Electronic searches of several relevant databases were conducted in May 2014. Altogether, they reviewed 19,000 scientific papers and identified more than 800 markers in the blood of cancer patients.

In the UK, survival rates for cancer are lower than in some other western countries, part of which may be related to late diagnosis. Developing more ways to spot cancers earlier, including studies into new screening technologies such as this, could help give more options for curative treatment, and save more lives in the future. In the UK, cancer is most often detected after patients present symptoms to their doctor, with a small proportion being detected through any of the three national screening programs for breast, bowel, and cervical cancer. This study could open the way for less invasive, new screening tests that could detect more cancers, possibly including some rare types, at an early stage when they are more likely to be treatable.

One of the studies reviewed examined plasma and bile from 77 patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), 67 with chronic pancreatitis and 71 healthy controls, and compared their levels of expression of 10 candidate micro ribonucleic acid (miRNAs) Their analysis showed increased expression of miRNA-10b, -155, and -106b in plasma and appears to be highly accurate in diagnosing PDAC.

Ian Cree, MD, PhD, a professor of Pathology and senior author of the study, said, “This is a new approach to early detection and the first time such a systematic review has been done. A single blood-based screening test would be a game changer for early detection of cancer which could help make it a curable disease for many more patients. We believe that we've identified all the relevant biomarkers; the next step is working out which ones work the best for spotting cancers.” The study was presented at the NCRI Cancer Conference, held November 2–5, 2014, in Liverpool (UK).

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University of Warwick Medical School