UK NHS begins world's biggest trial of blood test to detect cancer before symptoms appear

On Monday, Britain's state-run National Health Service (NHS) began world's largest trial of blood tests that can potentially help detect more than 50 s of cancer before symptoms appear. Developed by healthcare company GRAIL, Galleri test checks for earliest signs of cancer in blood that are difficult to spot early by picking up fragments of DNA. test is being organised by Cancer Research UK and King's College London Cancer Prevention Trials Unit in collaboration with healthcare company GRAIL and NHS. NHS aims to invite as many as 1,40,000 people from eight areas in England, d between 50 t0 77, to participate in test to kw how well test works. se people will be required to submit ir blood samples at mobile test clinics in different regions. y will be required to give a second sample after 12 months and third after two years.

NHS claimed that test effectively detects cancers that are usually difficult to identify in early sts - such as lung, bowel, neck, pancreas and throat cancers. Galleri test helps find chemical changes in fragments of genetic code shed from tumours into bloodstream. Meanwhile, Dame Cally Palmer, NHS National Director for Cancer, said that it is essential to detect symptoms of cancer early to improve survival, and this test has potential to do that very effectively. He furr said that trial is part of NHS's efforts to detect cancer even before symptoms appear and help people beat disease. NHS is expecting initial test results by 2023, and if result is encouraging, it intends to conduct test across England. 

 'Revolution' in cancer detection and treatment

Sir Harpal Kumar, Indian-origin President of GRAIL Europe, believes that Galleri test can detect several s of cancer and predict where it is in body with a high degree of accuracy. Meanwhile, NHS chief executive Amanda Pritchard termed Galleri test as "revolution" in cancer detection and treatment, which will help save many lives across world. He informed that, to begin with, test will be conducted in a few regions that include Cumbria, Greater Manchester, rth East, West Midlands, East Midlands, East of England, Kent and Medway, Cheshire and Merseyside, and South East London. 

(With PTI inputs)

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