A new genetic blood test might pave the way for detecting early stage cancers that often prove fatal when caught too late. The test scans blood for DNA fragments released by cancerous tumors.
By reviewing these DNA fragments for mutations found in 58 "cancer-driver" genes, the blood test detects many early stage cancers without rendering false positives for healthy people. The test detected stage 1 or 2 colon, breast, lung or ovarian cancers between 59 percent and 71 percent of the time when assessing 200 patients previously diagnosed with cancer. The test also proved capable of screening out cancer-free people.