A Blood Test Helps Detect Cancer In Its Early Stage

Although it is still in the experimental phase, this advance could be an alternative to invasive tests to detect the presence of different types of cancer.

Some studies carried out by the Higher Council for Scientific Research (CSIC) are yielding interesting conclusions to help detect cancer in its early stages. In this way, it will be possible to obtain an early diagnosis of tumors from a blood sample.

Very soon, the new tool developed by Spanish scientists to amplify DNA will be available to biomedical laboratories around the world. These advances are very important to achieve the early detection of cancer with a simple blood test.

The CSIC study

A team of scientists from the CSIC has developed a solution for the first kit that makes it possible to amplify these specific pieces of DNA.

• It would be about having enough to be able to sequence, read and analyze it.
• In a second phase, it could be detected if the evaluated person is developing a cancerous tumor.

This new solution for detecting cancer is already being tested in Spanish hospitals and has two great advantages:

• It is minimally invasive (a simple blood test is sufficient).
• It detects tumors in a very early stage.

 Luis Blanco, from the Severo Ochoa Molecular Biology Center of the CSIC, has affirmed that this discovery will be an advance with the same importance that, in its day, magnetic resonance imaging had.

The Future of Cancer Research

Although the progress made is important, more research is still needed. Only then can these techniques be applied in patients, on a large scale, to diagnose tumors in early stages and other types of genetic diseases.

In this way, so-called biomarker nanosensor platforms for detecting cancer are becoming viable alternative adjuncts to invasive biopsies of metastatic tumors.

Colon cancer characteristics

Colon cancer usually has its origin in an abnormal functioning of the cells of the colon or rectum that divide in an uncontrolled way to form a malignant tumor . This type of cancer usually begins with the formation of a small polyp within the tissue on the inner surface of the colon or rectum.

Polyps usually present in different ways : flat or raised. Those that are raised may be mushroom-shaped with or without a stem. Polyps are very common in patients over 50 years of age and the vast majority are not cancerous.

Colon cancer: risk factors

• Family history and advanced age.
• High alcohol consumption, obesity, lack of exercise, smoking and even a poorly balanced diet.
• People with ulcerative colitis or Crohn’s disease.

Detect colon cancer

Continuous advances in medicine make it possible to detect colon cancer early before a person begins to notice its symptoms. Various tests can be performed in the detection process.

It is highly recommended to carry out early detection tests for colon cancer from the age of 50. These must be repeated every two years.

In the case of risk groups due to family history, experts advise that these tests begin before that age and with more frequency when performing the tests. One of the most common tests to detect risk of colon cancer is that of occult blood in feces.

• For the test, a bag with a small tube in which the sample will be deposited can be collected at a pharmacy.
• In this tube there is a swab attached to the stopper with which the stool sample is collected and it will be deposited inside the tube to close it later.

If no blood is found in the stool, it is not likely that there are tumors. However, as we have already indicated, the test must be repeated every two years. Likewise, in the event that blood is detected in the stool, in most cases it is not equivalent to the presence of colon cancer and it is necessary to carry out more specific tests indicated by the doctor.