Galleri test – will there be a breakthrough in diagnosing cancer?

Ten post jest także dostępny w języku: polski

The Galleri blood test is one of the most promising medical developments in recent years. It is a simple blood test that can detect up to 50 types of cancer before the disease has any symptoms. The British NHS has just begun recruiting 140,000 volunteers for a study to test the effectiveness of this diagnostic device.

In Poland, almost 100,000 people die of cancer each year, and by 2020 cancer had claimed the lives of around 10 million people worldwide. The number of cancer patients will increase every year, and as WHO estimates, in 2040 almost 30 million people will be struggling with cancer. In order to fight cancer effectively, early diagnosis is needed, which can increase a patient’s chances of survival up to 10 times. A tool that makes it possible to detect cancer earlier, even before patients notice worrying symptoms, is the Galleri blood test provided by Grail Inc. It is thought that the test will be able to diagnose more than 50 types of cancer.

Now the NHS (National Health Service) plans to recruit 140,000 volunteers in England aged between 50 and 77 to check the effectiveness of the Galleri test as part of a randomised control trial.  Half of the participants will have their blood screened using the new test. The study will be led by Cancer Research UK and King’s College London together with the test’s manufacturer, with the first results expected in 2023. If the study proves successful, it will be extended to another group of people in 2024 and 2025.

The Galleri test is yet another tool that is expected to improve the diagnosis of cancer patients. One of the new solutions is also a Polish application Medic-Assistant, created by a specialist in clinical oncology and a programmer, thanks to which patients will be able to consult doctors by sending a photo of disturbing skin changes, thus accelerating the process of receiving advice or diagnosis.