New blood test shows promise in fight against Cancer

An experimental blood test could be the next key in the fight against cancer.
Researchers are testing what they call a ‘liquid biopsy,’ which looks for fragments of cancer in a patient’s blood.
The test was able to predict recurrences of lymphoma more than three months before they showed up on CT scans.
Experts say it was also able to identify patients who were unlikely to respond to chemotherapy.
“This could change forever the way we follow up not only response to treatments but also the emergence of resistance, and down the line could even be used for really early diagnosis,” said Dr. José Baselga, physician in chief and chief medical officer at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. More studies are needed, but experts say the test could be used for very early diagnosis of cancer.
Doctors say the blood test is much less invasive than a surgical biopsy or CT scan.