The Galleri blood test is designed to detect more than 50 types of cancer from a single blood sample. But can you trust the results?
The test is often inaccurate, and most people who have cancer will be informed by the Galleri blood test results that they don’t have cancer. This is especially likely with early stage cancers. For that reason, even if the test says you don’t have cancer, you should continue to get all the screening tests (such as mammograms, Pap smears, PSA tests, and colonoscopies) to make sure. Some people who are told they do have cancer based on the blood test won’t actually have cancer. Those patients will need CT scans, biopsies, and other tests to make sure they don’t. That’s why insurance won’t pay for the Galleri blood test. But RFK Jr. likes GRAIL, the company that makes Galleri, and so FDA seems to want to approve it, and that means Medicare will pay for it, and possibly private insurance will too.
MOST IMPORTANT: There is no evidence that Galleri screening reduces cancer deaths or helps patients live longer.
To find out more,
Read Dr. Diana Zuckerman’s statement at the FDA advisory committee meeting