Cancer is often detected late, which makes treatment difficult. But a big hope has arisen in the light of new research. Scientists have claimed that in future, 19 types of cancer can be detected 7 years in advance through a blood test. This research has been published in Britain's Nature Communications journal.
Blood samples of more than 44,000 people from the UK Biobank were analyzed. Of these, 4,900 people later developed cancer. The research team examined 1463 proteins in the blood. To find out which proteins may be associated with the risk of cancer, the researchers compared the results of those who did not have cancer, with the results of those who later developed cancer. Through this comparison, the scientists wanted to know whether there is any difference in the proteins or not.
Which cancers cause cancer risk?
The study found that 618 proteins were associated with 19 types of cancer, including colon, lung, non-Hodgkin lymphoma and liver cancer. However, more research is needed. At present, this is an early stage study and it is yet to be tested extensively. Nevertheless, this research is an important step towards early detection of cancer. If scientists are successful in further developing this blood test, it can significantly reduce cancer deaths.
Expert statement
Dr. Ian Faulks, Executive Director of Research and Innovation at Cancer Research UK, said that this research is a big step towards early detection of cancer. We believe that this test will be used practically in the future. However, it is not yet clear whether the treatment results will be better if cancer is detected so early. Further research is also needed on this. But detecting cancer so early can make patients mentally strong and give them a chance to start treatment as soon as possible.
(PC: Google)
