Surgeons and scientists have developed the world’s first brain tumor blood test that experts say could revolutionize diagnosis, speed up treatment and increase survival rates.
Brain tumors affect hundreds of thousands of people worldwide each year and kill more children and adults under the age of 40. A research team has recently created a simple blood test that could help diagnose patients with even the deadliest forms of brain cancer much sooner, sparing them invasive and high-risk surgical biopsies.
Experts say it could also lead to earlier diagnosis, which in turn would speed up treatment and potentially increase survival rates. The test would be particularly useful for patients with brain tumors that are difficult to detect, who could benefit from starting treatment as soon as possible.
The researchers found that the test could accurately diagnose a variety of brain tumors, including glioblastoma, the most commonly diagnosed type of high-grade brain tumor in adults, astrocytoma and oligodendroglioma. The test had high analytical sensitivity, specificity and accuracy. Scientists are now planning further studies to validate the results and if successful, the test will be ready in 2 years.
Blood tests should be done once or twice a year. When we have a cold, we do blood tests to determine if it’s a viral or bacterial infection, but that shouldn’t be the only reason to do the tests. A complete blood count means determining the number of leukocytes, the concentration of hemoglobin and platelets. Also, patients are often recommended to do some basic biochemical tests that they can do in any of our clinics. Hematology deals with the diagnosis and treatment of malignant and non-malignant diseases.