New blood tests designed to check for multiple cancers in one go will be offered to NHS patients at around 200 GP surgeries in England as part of a trial aimed at detecting hard-to-diagnose abdominal cancers, including liver, ovarian and pancreatic cancer, much sooner. More than 20,000 patients aged 45 and over with symptoms such as pain or persistent bloating will be eligible to take part.
The tests look for proteins or fragments of DNA in the blood that may signal cancer, and the results could help doctors decide which patients with vague symptoms need further investigations. If a signal is present, scientists may be able to pinpoint where in the body the tumour is located.
Patients will provide one or two tubes of blood at their GP practice, taken alongside routine tests. The STRIDE-RCT trial is about detecting bowel, small bowel, stomach, oesophageal, pancreatic, liver, bile duct and gallbladder, ovarian, endometrial, kidney, bladder and prostate cancer. It will assess whether the tests are accurate enough for wider NHS use.
The idea of a blood test that can identify multiple cancers is not new. A separate NHS trial of a test called Galleri recently failed to meet its main goal of reducing diagnoses of late-stage cancers, although researchers are still assessing its potential benefits.
Around 71,000 people in England are diagnosed each year with pancreatic, stomach, liver, ovarian or bowel cancer, and nearly 35,000 die from these diseases. The hard-to-diagnose abdominal cancers are often found only after they have spread.
Prof Peter Johnson, NHS England's national clinical director for cancer, said detecting abdomen cancer early was "notoriously difficult" because symptoms can easily be mistaken for other less serious conditions. Earlier diagnosis gives patients a much better chance of successful treatment and survival.
The trial also carries caveats for patients: a positive result does not automatically mean there is cancer, and a negative result is not a guaranteed all-clear.
Health secretary Yvette Cooper said she hoped simple blood tests such as these would help identify patients needing urgent investigation much sooner.
Michelle Mitchell from Cancer Research UK said: "GPs have long needed better tools to help them navigate that uncertainty by identifying which patients require further testing and this trial in England is an important step towards addressing that need."
Analysis
Why This Matters
- The trial targets cancers that are typically found late, when treatment options are fewer; if the tests prove accurate, they could change how GPs triage patients with vague abdominal symptoms.
- Results will shape whether England's health service adopts multi-cancer blood testing more widely, a decision with significant cost and workforce implications for diagnostic services.
- The outcome carries weight beyond England: other health systems are watching whether blood-based multi-cancer screening delivers on its promise after the Galleri trial missed its main goal.
Background
Multi-cancer early detection tests are a growing area of medical research: rather than screening for one cancer at a time, they search a blood sample for biological signals associated with several types of tumour. The appeal for family doctors is a relatively simple test that could sort patients with non-specific complaints, such as persistent bloating or pain, into those who need urgent scans and those who can be monitored. Detection at an earlier stage generally improves the chances of successful treatment, which is why health systems have invested in trialling the technology even though its accuracy and clinical benefit are still being established.
Key Perspectives
Prof Peter Johnson, NHS England national clinical director for cancer: says detecting abdomen cancer early is "notoriously difficult" because symptoms can easily be mistaken for other, less serious conditions, and that earlier diagnosis gives patients a much better chance of successful treatment and survival.
Michelle Mitchell, Cancer Research UK: says GPs have long needed better tools to navigate uncertainty by identifying which patients require further testing, and calls the trial in England an important step towards addressing that need.
Yvette Cooper, health secretary: says she hopes simple blood tests such as these will help identify patients needing urgent investigation much sooner.
What to Watch
- Whether the University of Birmingham-led trial recruits its planned 20,000-plus participants and how quickly the accuracy results emerge.
- Any signal from the separate Galleri trial, whose researchers are still assessing potential benefits after it missed its main goal of reducing late-stage diagnoses.
- Whether a positive accuracy finding leads NHS England to commission the tests beyond the trial sites.
Checked
12 claims in this story checked against 1 source: 12 supported.
Show each claim
- SupportedThe trial will offer new multi-cancer blood tests at some 200 GP surgeries in England.BBC News: “New blood tests designed to check for multiple cancers in one go will be offered to NHS patients in some 200 GP surgeries in England as part of a trial.”
- SupportedMore than 20,000 patients aged 45 and over with symptoms such as pain or persistent bloating will be eligible to take part.BBC News: “More than 20,000 patients aged 45 and over with symptoms such as pain or persistent bloating will be eligible to take part.”
- SupportedThe trial is government-funded.BBC News: “The government-funded trial, led by the University of Birmingham, will assess whether the tests are accurate enough for wider NHS use.”
- SupportedThe trial is led by the University of Birmingham.BBC News: “The government-funded trial, led by the University of Birmingham, will assess whether the tests are accurate enough for wider NHS use.”
- SupportedThe trial aims to detect hard-to-diagnose abdominal cancers, including liver, ovarian and pancreatic cancer, much sooner.BBC News: “The aim is to detect hard-to-diagnose abdominal cancers, including liver, ovarian and pancreatic cancer, much sooner.”
- SupportedThe STRIDE-RCT trial covers bowel, small bowel, stomach, oesophageal, pancreatic, liver, bile duct and gallbladder, ovarian, endometrial, kidney, bladder and prostate cancer.BBC News: “The new STRIDE-RCT trial, external is about detecting bowel, small bowel, stomach, oesophageal, pancreatic, liver, bile duct and gallbladder, ovarian, endometrial, kidney, bladder and prostate cancer.”
- SupportedThe trial will assess whether the tests are accurate enough for wider NHS use.BBC News: “The government-funded trial, led by the University of Birmingham, will assess whether the tests are accurate enough for wider NHS use.”
- SupportedA separate NHS trial of Galleri recently failed to meet its main goal of reducing diagnoses of late-stage cancers.BBC News: “A separate NHS trial of a test called Galleri recently failed to meet its main goal of reducing diagnoses of late-stage cancers, although researchers are still assessing its potential benefits.”
- SupportedAround 71,000 people in England are diagnosed each year with pancreatic, stomach, liver, ovarian or bowel cancer, and nearly 35,000 die from these diseases.BBC News: “Around 71,000 people in England are diagnosed each year with pancreatic, stomach, liver, ovarian or bowel cancer, and nearly 35,000 die from these diseases.”
- SupportedProf Peter Johnson said detecting abdomen cancer early was “notoriously difficult” because symptoms can easily be mistaken for less serious conditions.BBC News: “Prof Peter Johnson, NHS England's national clinical director for cancer, said detecting abdomen cancer early was "notoriously difficult" because symptoms can easily be mistaken for other less serious conditions.”
- SupportedA positive result does not automatically mean there is cancer, and a negative result is not a guaranteed all-clear.BBC News: “A positive result does not automatically mean there is cancer, and a negative result is not a guaranteed all-clear.”
- SupportedMichelle Mitchell said: “GPs have long needed better tools to help them navigate that uncertainty by identifying which patients require further testing and this trial in England is an important step towards addressing that need.”BBC News: “Michelle Mitchell from Cancer Research UK said: "GPs have long needed better tools to help them navigate that uncertainty by identifying which patients require further testing and this trial in England is an important step towards addressing that need."”
