Breakthrough in the fight against cancer: The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the world’s first blood test to diagnose colon cancer. Although the new test will not replace the colonoscopy test, which is considered the “standard” in the diagnosis of the disease, and it does not detect precancerous polyps, its developers believe that it may increase the number of patients detected, especially among those who fear the old invasive test.
Colorectal cancer is the second most common among women in Israel and the third most common among men. Every year about 3,000 men and women in Israel are diagnosed with colon cancer and about 1,300 die from the disease. The traditional colonoscopy examination recommended in Israel from the age of 50 and over and in the USA from the age of 45.
It involves a three-day preparation using laxatives, and a “blur” anesthesia on the day of the test that requires absence from work. During the colonoscopy, an optical fiber is inserted through the anus into the intestines, at the end of which is a camera and a surgical instrument, with the goal being to locate precancerous polyps and remove them before they develop into a malignant tumor.
Breakthrough: an injection given only twice a year – prevents HIV infection
A blood test to diagnose Alzheimer’s is more accurate than a doctor’s test
However, due to the fear of the invasive test, the preparation for the test and the procedure itself, many are afraid to approach it. Recent studies have shown that the test only reduces the risk of developing colon cancer by 31%, apparently due to the low response rate. Probably due to the low response rate.
The new blood test called “Shield” tested at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center in Seattle is based on the detection of DNA released from cancerous tumors. The test was found to be 83% effective in detecting patients with colon cancer, a finding that is considered significant. The findings were published earlier this year in the prestigious medical journal “New England Journal”.
Despite the high accuracy rate, a positive result is not a diagnosis in itself and will require a colonoscopy to locate the location of the tumors and the required treatment through radiation chemotherapy or surgery. The test will be available in the coming weeks in the US. The Ministry of Health usually follows the FDA’s approvals and ratifies them, but at this stage the test has not yet been submitted for approval in Israel.