By Diagnostics World Staff
December 8, 2017 | Sarah Cannon announced that several of its affiliated programs will participate in a new study, called STRIVE, which focuses on developing a test for early breast cancer detection. The STRIVE Study is designed to determine if a blood test can complement mammography screenings by identifying genetic material arising from tumors to help discover breast cancer at its earliest stages.
“By participating in this exciting research effort, women in our communities will help scientists in their efforts to develop a test that is intended to enhance our ability to detect cancer at earlier and more treatable stages,” Dax Kurbegov, principal investigator of the STRIVE Study at Sarah Cannon and Vice President and Physician-in-Chief of Clinical Programs for Sarah Cannon, said in a press release. “The study is designed to help identify tiny fragments of genetic material that may signal the presence of breast cancer, and may help guide healthcare decisions by providing more information and reducing uncertainty.”
The study, sponsored by GRAIL, is seeking to enroll 120,000 women across participating sites. Women who volunteer to participate will provide a blood sample and complete a short questionnaire at the time of their regular screening mammogram. In addition, participants will be followed, and their health records will be monitored for up to five years for new cancer diagnoses.
“Over the last decade, we have begun to better understand the critical role that genetic information plays in how we diagnose and treat cancer, but the way in which we apply such insights into early cancer detection has been limited,” Howard A. “Skip” Burris III, President of Clinical Operations and Chief Medical Officer at Sarah Cannon, wrote in a statement. “By participating in this large clinical research study, we are excited to explore the role that blood-based testing may play to assist in early cancer detection and how it may provide an even greater benefit to patients.”
The study will be offered to women undergoing screening mammograms at the following Sarah Cannon locations: TriStar Summit Medical Center and TriStar Centennial Medical Center in Tennessee; Centerpoint Medical Center and Menorah Medical Center in Kansas/Missouri; and Henrico Doctors' Hospital and Johnston-Willis Hospital in Virginia. New sites are expected to open for enrollment in additional locations.