The UK will test a new blood test that could identify 50 different types of cancer



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The UK is partnering with a Californian health company to test a simple blood test in the hope that it will detect around 50 types of early-stage cancers.

The Galleri multitumor screening test developed by Menlo Park’s GRAIL company will be tested by 165,000 people in Britain starting in mid-2021, reports CNN.

The results of this pilot program are expected by 2023.

“Early detection, particularly for difficult-to-treat conditions such as ovarian and pancreatic cancer – has the potential to save many lives,” said Simon Stevens, who heads the UK’s National Health Service.

GRAIL’s research into early cancer detection was supported by investments from Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos, according to the company’s website.

But some experts doubt the effectiveness of the screening test.

“The Galleri blood test is a test that may be able to detect cancer in the blood in individuals with early stage cancer, although the evidence that it does so effectively is weak,” said Paul Pharoah, professor of cancer epidemiology at the University of Cambridge. in an interview with the Science Media Center.

“The NHS should not invest in such a test before it has been adequately evaluated in well-conducted large-scale clinical trials.”

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