"A Revolution": A Blood Test to Detect Breast Cancer Relapses? The Promise of the Curie Institute

The Curie Institute, a flagship of French research, recently unveiled a feat: a simple blood test could help predict a relapse of breast cancer . This discovery is currently the subject of discussion at the ASCO (American Society of Clinical Oncology) conference, which is bringing together the international scientific and medical oncology community in Chicago from May 30 to June 6.

Ludivine Ernoult, a patient at the Curie Institute, is one of the women who participated in this clinical trial. A mother of two, she was able to test this blood test two years ago to detect DNA fragments, which can help detect a potential recurrence of breast cancer.

"I participated in this study, which very quickly revealed a very early recurrence, which allowed my oncologist to immediately implement a treatment protocol," she told BFMTV.

An express detection that allowed him to begin chemotherapy only 10 days after the blood test, unlike a traditional monitoring process where detection takes place "over several months."

In the context of post-treatment breast cancer, radiological examinations remain insufficient to detect early recurrences. This blood test appears to be a revolutionary scientific advance for the future of thousands of women affected.

"The goal is to detect relapses of previously treated cancer and to begin treatments, ideally local ones, to prevent the spread and generalization" of the cancer, explains François-Clément Bidard, oncologist at the Curie Institute.

A blood test that also allows "treatments to be started earlier," adds the doctor.

In France, it is the most common cancer in women, with nearly 60,000 new cases diagnosed each year in France.