NC playing critical role in new offensive against cancer

Two North Carolina cities have been part of medical history in the making. Duke Cancer Institute in Durham and Sarah Cannon Family Medicine in Asheville participated in PATHFINDER 2, one of the largest clinical trials of its kind, testing a new blood test designed to detect dozens of types of cancer before symptoms appear.

The results are significant. When the multicancer early detection blood test was added to currently recommended cancer screenings, it identified more than seven times as many cancers. More than half of those cancers were found at early stages, when they are highly treatable and cause less disruption to a patient’s life.

The need for tools like this is clear. Each year in the United States, more than 600,000 people die from cancer. That mortality rate has stayed unacceptably high despite advances in treatment, largely because too many cancers are not found until they reach an advanced stage.

Nearly half of those deaths involve Stage IV cancers. Seven of every 10 cancer-related deaths involve cancers for which no standard screening currently exists, including pancreatic, liver and ovarian cancers. An MCED blood test addresses that gap directly, giving patients more treatment options that are less costly, less invasive and offer a greater chance of long-term survival.

Congress recently acted on this opportunity. Thanks to the leadership of Rep. Richard Hudson and support from hundreds of stakeholders nationwide, a new law creates a pathway for Medicare to cover FDA-approved MCED blood tests. Once fully implemented, older Americans, who face the highest cancer risk, will have access to this new diagnostic tool.

North Carolina researchers helped make this progress possible. The work done at Duke and Sarah Cannon brings us closer to a future where more families avoid the tragedy of a late-stage diagnosis, and where early detection gives patients a real fighting chance.