FirstHealth of the Carolinas, a non-profit healthcare system serving patients across 15 counties in the mid-Carolinas region, has partnered with GRAIL, a healthcare company with a focus on early cancer detection, on April 18, 2023, to provide Galleri, a multicancer early detection (MCED) screening test.
The test will initially be available to eligible patients through FirstHealth's Concierge Medicine Clinic in Southern Pines and will be offered to those at high risk of cancer, including individuals aged 50 or above, as part of the healthcare system's comprehensive cancer screening and care.
According to the BIS Research report, the global multicancer screening market is projected to reach $7.78 billion by 2032 from $1.90 billion in 2022, growing at a CAGR of 15.09% during the forecast period 2023-2032.
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FirstHealth will be the first healthcare system in North Carolina to provide the Galleri MCED test, and additional primary care clinics will offer the test soon.
The D.O. and President of FirstHealth Physician Group, Dan Barnes, stated, “As a leader in cancer detection and treatment, FirstHealth is proud to support those in our community with an elevated risk of cancer with access to comprehensive cancer care. We are committed to providing patients with ground-breaking technologies like the Galleri MCED test close to home.”
The Galleri test has shown promising results in a clinical study, demonstrating its ability to detect a shared cancer signal across over 50 types of cancer, with a low false positive rate of less than 1%. When a cancer signal is detected, Galleri can determine the cancer signal's origin with high accuracy, enabling clinicians to focus on their diagnostic evaluation. The MCED technology can help healthcare providers to detect cancers at an earlier stage, which enables them to promptly provide diagnostic evaluations and begin treatment if necessary. This can increase the likelihood of successful treatment because early detection allows for timely intervention.
According to the American Cancer Society, more than 609,000 people die from cancer each year in the U.S., in large part because some of the deadliest cancers are found too late when outcomes are often poorer. Recommended screening tests save lives but only cover five cancer types in the U.S., i.e., breast cancer, colon cancer, cervical cancer, prostate cancer, and, in high-risk adults, lung cancer. About 71% of cancer deaths are from cancers that lack recommended early-detection screening.
FirstHealth is dedicated to offering innovative technologies such as the Galleri MCED test to patients in their local area.
What is the MCED screening test?
MCED stands for multicancer early detection, and it refers to a type of screening test that can detect multiple types of cancer at an early stage, even before symptoms become apparent. This type of test uses advanced technologies to analyze blood samples for specific biomarkers or other signals that indicate the presence of cancer. The aim of MCED tests is to provide a more comprehensive and accurate way of detecting cancer early when it is more treatable and the chances of survival are higher.
The Galleri MCED screening test, for example, can detect a shared cancer signal across more than 50 types of cancer, including some of the deadliest cancers, such as lung, ovarian, and pancreatic cancers, which lack recommended screening tests today. If Galleri detects a cancer signal, it can accurately determine where the signal is coming from, allowing clinicians to concentrate their diagnostic evaluation and potentially detect cancers at an earlier stage.
What potential does multicancer screening hold in the future?
Multicancer screening has the potential to revolutionize cancer detection and treatment by providing a more comprehensive and accurate way of detecting cancer at an early stage. With conventional cancer screening methods, such as mammograms and colonoscopies, only a limited number of cancer types can be detected, and many cancers go undetected until symptoms become apparent or the cancer has spread to other parts of the body.
Multicancer screening tests, on the other hand, can detect multiple types of cancer at an early stage, often before symptoms occur, by analyzing blood samples for specific biomarkers or other signals that indicate the presence of cancer.
Conclusion
This early detection of cancer can lead to earlier intervention and more effective treatment, potentially saving lives and reducing healthcare costs associated with later-stage cancer treatment. Multicancer screening could also help to reduce disparities in cancer care by providing access to screening tests to those who may not have access to traditional cancer screening methods.
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