Urine test can spot more than nine in 10 bladder cancers

A urine test being trialled by the NHS can detect over 90% of bladder cancer cases, according to recent findings. Conducted by the University of Birmingham and diagnostics company Nonacus, the study involved nearly 1,000 patients from seven hospitals in England and Scotland. This innovation could potentially reduce the number of patients requiring invasive cystoscopies, a procedure that involves inserting a small camera into the bladder.

In the UK, more than 300,000 cystoscopies are performed annually, leading to long waiting lists in certain areas. While the urine test is not a substitute for cystoscopies, it could help doctors prioritize patients at higher risk for urgent cystoscopies, rather than waiting. The Galeas urine test, developed by the University of Birmingham with funding from Cancer Research UK, detects genetic material shed into urine by bladder cancer cells.

It looks for over 450 DNA mutations in 23 genes associated with bladder cancer. The test achieved a 92% detection rate for bladder cancer, with a negative result indicating a more than 99% chance of not having the disease. Prof Richard Bryan, co-author of the study, expressed excitement over the promising early results in a real-world patient population.

Nonacus, which commercialized the test under a licensing agreement, will share part of the revenue with the University and CRUK. Michelle Mitchell from CRUK emphasized the urgency of finding faster and less invasive ways to diagnose or rule out cancer, noting that too many people are waiting too long for a bladder cancer diagnosis.