Finding cancer early is the key to effectively treating the disease and giving patients a better chance of survival. Many screening options exist for a variety of cancers in order to achieve this goal of early detection, including:
- Mammograms for breast cancer screening
- Prostate specific antigen (PSA) screening for prostate cancer
- Colonoscopy for early colon cancer detection
- Pap and human papillomavirus (HPV) tests for cervical cancer screening
However, despite the variety of screening options available, most cancers are still not found until the later stages of the disease, “when treatment options are limited and outcomes can turn deadly,” according to an article by Damon Anderson, PhD, in G2 Intelligence’s January 2023 issue of Diagnostic Testing & Emerging Technologies.
Anderson writes that new technological advances have now enabled the minimally-invasive sequencing of patients’ tumor DNA for more information on the tumor’s origin, stage, and type. Recently released technology has combined the information gained from sequencing “with screening capabilities for multiple cancers, including many of those previously intractable to early detection,” Anderson adds. These new options include:
- Non-invasive tests for colon cancer
- Liquid biopsy and circulating tumor DNA
- Comprehensive genomic profiling tests
- Methylation-based analysis using next-generation sequencing (NGS) technologies for detection of multiple cancer types
To learn more about these technologies, their potential for early cancer detection, and the latest related research, see the full article in our January 2023 Diagnostic Testing & Emerging Technologies. Sign in with your DTET subscription or get access with a free DTET trial.