The government has announced a trial of a new AI-powered blood test which detects cancer and its location in the body.
The miONCO-Dx test, which is to be trialled on 8,000 patients, has so far shown to be over 99% accurate at identifying 12 of the deadliest, most common cancers at an early stage. It works by measuring the microRNA in a blood sample and uses AI to identify if cancer is present and if so, where it is located in the body.
It is hoped that the test can diagnose cancers such as bowel cancer faster and earlier, therefore negating the need for invasive procedures including colonoscopies.
The announcement coincided with the Health and Social Care Secretary, Wes Streeting’s, visit to a research lab funded by Cancer Research UK, which has been renamed in memory of campaigner Dame Deborah James. The Bowelbabe Laboratory will bring together leading scientists and experts to advance the understanding of bowel cancer.
