Oxford to assess revolutionary multi-cancer blood test in trial, for future implementation in the NHS. Photo Credit: Shutterstock

Health United Kingdom27. January 2025

Milestone Reached for Detecting Cancer Early

A team of researchers affiliated with the University of Oxford, England, developed a liquid biopsy test capable of detecting subtle signs of cancer in a noninvasive way, allowing patients to be treated much sooner.

“Many cancers, such as pancreatic and ovarian, often go unnoticed until they’ve advanced, when treatment is more difficult and less effective,” explains Dr Dimitris Vavoulis of Oxford’s Wellcome Centre for Human Genetics and co-lead researcher. “Although our approach is still early in development, we envision that a simple blood draw could eventually be all that’s needed to screen for multiple cancers, giving patients and doctors a faster, more convenient tool to stay ahead of the disease.”

The innovative test TriOx analyzes multiple features of DNA in the blood, thus accurately detecting six types of cancer – colorectal, esophageal, pancreatic, renal, ovarian, and breast –  even in their early stages. This technique is fast, sensitive, and minimally invasive, making it a good alternative to current detecting methods. In their study, they evaluated blood samples from patients with and without cancer. The liquid biopsy test managed to detect cancers and distinguish between people who had cancer and those who did not, with 94.9% sensitivity and 88.8% specificity. The researchers then combined a cutting-edge DNA analysis technique called TAPS with machine learning, thus analyzing and combining multiple key features from the DNA circulating in the blood. Still in its early stages, TriOx could be integrated into routine healthcare to make early cancer detection as common as cholesterol or blood sugar testing.

Source:
University of Oxford

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