A new way of detecting cancer through RNA test of blood platelets discovered

Researchers from Umeå University in Sweden collaborated with researchers from the Netherlands and the US to discover a new method of detecting and classifying cancer at an early stage through blood test. They took blood samples from 283 individuals of which 228 people had some form of cancer and 55 showed no evidence of cancer. By analyzing and comparing the RNA profiles of these individuals, the researchers were able to detect and classify with 96% accuracy the presence of cancer. Moreover, they were able to identify the origin of the tumors in patients with diagnosed cancer in the lung, breast, pancreas, brain, liver, colon and rectum with 71% accuracy. A test like this can help in detecting cancer at an early stage and also provide assistance in deciding the course of treatment.

Read more in Science Daily.