Simple blood test may soon help detect colon cancer

Israel21c ^ | Yulia Karra

[nickcarraway]

Ping

[IndyTiger]

Hope this test or one similar to it gets perfected soon. I’m due for my five-year colonoscopy check this fall. The prep is worse than the actual procedure.

[Veto!]

I wonder whether eating terrible processed food contributes to colon cancer. My neighbor was just diagnosed with prostate cancer and he eats nothing but cheap junk food I wouldn’t feed my cat.

[ClearCase_guy]

I am in no way defending inmate Elizabeth Holmes and her company Theranos, but I will point out that this is exactly the sort of work she was focusing on.

OncoRedox seems to be making progress and I know other companies are also discovering all kinds of disease with simple blood tests. I guess Elizabeth Holmes was a fraud. But I suppose these other companies have been given permission to succeed without being dragged into court.

[nickcarraway]

It could.

[nickcarraway]

No doubt what she promised to do is a great things.

She raised a lot of money. One major mistake she made was insisting the final step of multiple tests from a drop of blood, or nothing. Some of the very smart people working for her said they could make make tests with less blood. She would accept no iterations, only the final step.

[Z28.310]

"....damned near killed him"...

[quilterdebbie]

That is so true! My colonoscopy was scheduled for noon on a Monday. On Friday the office called me to ask if I could come in at 8:30. I said “YESSSS!!!” I was dreading waiting around to go to the office after doing the prep.

[MayflowerMadam]

It seems that if there is any kind of cancer in someone’s body it would have to be detected in a blood test. It just makes sense.

[Angelino97]

Doesn't sound like this blood test will replace colonoscopies.

This blood test, like the stool test, only tests for cancer.

The colonoscopy searches for pre-cancerous polyps.

[beef]

“She raised a lot of money.”

She also put a lot of people in jeopardy. Her crap went live in a bunch of Walgreens where cancer patients were depending on the results of these tests to determine their course of treatment. A lot of normally smart people were taken in by her charms, or were just too scared of the PC implications of calling out the “Female Steve Jobs”.

[sauropod]

.

[nickcarraway]

I wasn't defending her, but she raised a record amount from VCs whose usual skepticism lapsed. If you haven't read Bad Blood, you should.

By the way, in 2015, VP Joe Biden visited their facility and called it "inspiring." Of course, they had backing from Republicans, as well as Democrats.

[Bonemaker]

I’ll take a blood draw over that wretched “procedure” any time! I’ve got their prep right here!🤨

[Bonemaker]

I’ll take a blood draw over that wretched “procedure” any time! I’ve got their prep right here!🤨

[Dr. Sivana]

I wonder whether eating terrible processed food contributes to colon cancer.

Not always. My father-in-law died from colon cancer at 53, was very active, ate healthy and natural, was lean and lived right (except for getting a timely colonoscopy).

The difference? He was Dutch, and BOTH parents have died of colon cancer, and several of his six brothers had pre-cancerous polyps removed as well as two of his daughters.

In his case it was genes.

[Dr. Sivana]

The colonoscopy searches for pre-cancerous polyps.

Yup. My wife's side of the family is riddled with it. Lives have likely been saved (or at least drastic surgeries and treatments avoided) because they all know now to get colonoscopies. Not everyone is in her situation, so if you are much less likely, such a test is better than nothing at all.

[Bob434]

[[Three years later, the cancer came back. “It may be only 4%, but when you’re part of this 4%, you’re 100% sick,” he notes. ]]

Tough break- that would suck being one of the 4%

[ImJustAnotherOkie]

Too bad that is not good enough. Removing polyps prevents cancer.

My doc told me if you got scoped every 3 years you will never get cancer.