Overview
- The Johns Hopkins team published their findings in Cancer Discovery after testing 52 plasma samples from an NIH cardiovascular study
- The multicancer early detection (MCED) assay correctly flagged eight participants who received cancer diagnoses within six months of their blood draw
- Further analysis of earlier stored samples from six individuals revealed tumor-derived mutations up to 3.5 years before their clinical diagnosis
- Although some MCED tests are offered as Laboratory Developed Tests, none have full FDA approval and researchers call for larger trials to confirm accuracy
- Scientists stress that establishing clear clinical follow-up protocols will be vital to turn early detection into better treatment outcomes