Breakthrough blood test detects very early signs of breast cancer

British researchers say a new blood test which is able to detect signs of breast cancer four years earlier than it would be picked up by a standard mammogram, could be available within months.

The test, developed by scientists at Nottingham University's commercial technology company, Oncimmune is able to identify the very subtle chemical changes which occur in the bloodstream as a reaction to the presence of cancer cells in the body.

Such miniscule changes usually only concern a small number of young cancer cells which start to change long before a lump can be detected and the blood test has the potential to save the lives of thousands of women.

It could also ensure many more avoid mastectomies or having to undergo radical cancer therapies.

The test is being regarded as a possible breakthrough in breast cancer research and experts suggest it could dramatically increase survival rates because very early-stage breast cancer is considered curable.

The researchers say preliminary trials have been encouraging and currently thousands of volunteers in the East Midlands are being recruited for a large trial.

It is hoped that the results of that trial will then confirm the test's accuracy and robustness across all age and ethnic groups.

Professor John Robertson, professor of surgery at the University of Nottingham, who first began the research a decade ago, says the possibility of a blood test that will provide a better chance of identifying more people who have an early-stage breast cancer at a point when it can be cured, is coming closer.

Professor Robertson says they are cautiously optimistic and if it does work the test could then be adapted for other cancers.

Breast cancer is the most common female cancer, killing 500,000 women worldwide every year.