Very soon, you’ll be able to detect breast cancer with a simple blood test, thanks to a Phoenix, AZ company. William Gartner, founder of Biomarker Technologies LLC announced that he hopes to complete a clinical study of Biomarker’s new blood test early next year. After that, doctors could begin using the test to diagnose breast cancer. A pilot test effectively detected breast cancer in 88% of all patients. The company will be confirming those results in a larger clinical study.
American Cancer Society statistics show that 97 percent of breast-cancer cases are treatable when diagnosed at a “localized” stage. Survival rates drop to 79 percent when cancer spreads to the “regional” stage. Obviously a simple blood test would be very effective at catching cancer earlier, and more women would be able to afford a blood test, versus a mammogram. Biomarker expects it will charge $150 to $275 for each test.
