The Cancer Screening Trust

User

Posted 26 Feb 2023 at 15:00

Apologies if this has already been covered by others, I am new to this. I read today in the paper about a prostate cancer blood test that has a high level of accuracy and might obviate the need for unpleasant and possibly dangerous biosies (I am still recovering from my first last Tuesday). The test is offered by The Cancer Screening Trust, and of course is only offered privately at present, for a fee of £750.

Does anyone have any views on or experience of this? My experience of my first biopsy puts me off having any more.

Many thanks to all who post here. It's been invaluable for someone new to this and trying not to worry too much (and failing).

Tom

PS - apols if this is posted in the wrong place

User

Posted 26 Feb 2023 at 23:03

I think I would treat it with healthy cynicism for the time being. Even if you paid for the test and got a strong indication of possible prostate cancer, there would still have to be a biopsy to confirm it.

Worth noting that the Cancer Screening Trust is a business despite its name suggesting that it might be a research-based charity. Also worth noting that this company doesn't seem to have been involved in the research regarding the new prostate cancer screening test - that was done by Oxford Biodynamics with the university of East Anglia and Imperial College London. The new test has only been trialled with a tiny number of samples - 147 - so we are a long way from it being verified, approved and rolled out. Having read the bumph on Datar (the sister site to CSTrust) it appears that the liquid biopsy can pick up prostate adenocarcinoma (according to them) but there is no mention of the other 26 types of prostate cancer.

"Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards." Soren Kierkegaard

User

Posted 27 Feb 2023 at 09:25

Thank you for the response, very interesting. I will definitely treat it with a degree of scepticism, however I will equally keep a close eye on it. If I do need future biopsies then this could be very helpful for those of us with other medical condtions that make the usual biopsy procedure particularly difficult. I think if the blood test gave a negative reading then unnecessary biopsies might be reduced.

Thanks again.

Tom

PS - The newspaper report says "Prostate Cancer UK, which supported the research said these results show great promise and suggest it may be possible to use this test to detect cancer in the first place". And the FDA has granted breathrough device designation, which if you know about the FDA is a pretty big deal. It does sound very encouraging.

Edited by member 27 Feb 2023 at 10:34 | Reason: PS added

User

Posted 27 Feb 2023 at 18:09

I think you are confusing two different tests. PCUK has commented on the early trial I mentioned above - that has only been tested on a tiny number of men and will need more trials before it becomes available. Cancer Screening Trust seems to be selling something different which, as you have noted, has been given FDA approval to continue trials. Quite how they are allowed to sell something that is still unproven is beyond me but there you go 🤷‍♀️

"Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards." Soren Kierkegaard

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