Genomics company Illumina is developing a technology that could spot cancer
signs in healthy people from drops of blood.
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| A blood test to catch cancers early is in development, backed by Bill Gates |
Imagine if a simple blood test could detect cancers
in healthy people before any symptoms show up. Backed by $100m (£69m)
from renowned tech founders like Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos, a new
company is developing a technique to do just that.
We hope today is a turning point in the war on cancer
Jay Flatley, CEO of Illumina
Called Grail, the company has been set up by
US-based gene sequencer Illumina, and will take on the ultimate
challenge of detecting any type of cancer - from breast, to lung or
prostate cancer - just by testing blood of healthy people. The goal: to
find the signs before there are any symptoms or tumours, and hence save
lives.Although others have
succeeded in creating blood tests to detect tumour relapses or cancer
progression, spotting cancer signs in the healthy is the holy grail.
The technology, known as a "liquid biopsy", would work by spotting
fragments of DNA that are signatures for cancer in the blood, as it
develops.
Several scientists, including the Cancer Research UK Manchester Institute and the University of Leicester in the UK, are working on similar technologies. Catching cancer early has its downsides - some cancers never go on to
become life-threatening, but treating them can have toxic side-effects. However, Flatley told the New York Times
that Grail will solve these issues by sequencing the DNA of 30,000 to
50,000 people, and tracking how serious their cancers are over time, to
make the test accurate. Being backed by a large company like Illumina
means that its DNA sequencing technologies are far more accurate than
the average gene sequencing tech.
At the University of
Leicester, researchers such as Professor Jacqui Shaw, are trying to
solve the problem by analysing the DNA fragments for specific errors
related to fast-progressing tumours. “We hope today is a turning point in the war on cancer,” said Jay Flatley,
Illumina chief executive and chairman of Grail. “By enabling the early
detection of cancer in asymptomatic individuals through a simple blood
screen, we aim to massively decrease cancer mortality by detecting the
disease at a curable stage.”
Last year, a similar test created in London by the Institute of Cancer Research, was able to detect breast cancer relapses almost eight months before any symptoms developed.
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| Tumour biopsies do detect cancer but are invasive, and sometimes too late |
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| Getty |
Last year, a similar test created in London by the Institute of Cancer Research, was able to detect breast cancer relapses almost eight months before any symptoms developed.
2.5 million : Number of people living with cancer in the UK
46% : Percentage of deaths due to cancer of the breast, lung, prostate and bowel (2012)
50% : Adults diagnosed with cancer survive for ten years or more (2010/11)
1 in 4 : People facing poor health or disability after cancer treatment
28% : Cancer deaths caused by smoking
65+ : Age group with highest risk of getting cancer
30 : Number of children diagnosed with cancer every week
Source : Macmillan Cancer Support, Cancer Research UK
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