{"id":621255,"date":"2026-05-03T15:31:09","date_gmt":"2026-05-03T15:31:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/621255\/"},"modified":"2026-05-03T15:31:09","modified_gmt":"2026-05-03T15:31:09","slug":"mgb-dana-farber-turn-toward-early-cancer-answers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/621255\/","title":{"rendered":"MGB, Dana-Farber turn toward early cancer answers"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the last few years, MGB<\/a> and Dana-Farber<\/a> have each formed centers dedicated to finding and researching cancers at their earliest stages \u2014 when they\u2019re easiest to treat. Doctors at the centers are coordinating not only which screenings patients would benefit from, but what, if anything, they should do with the results. <\/p>\n

\u201cThere are multiple companies who are trying to develop blood-based screening tests where you could maybe screen for multiple cancers with a single test,\u201d said medical oncologist and MGB Cancer Institute Early Detection and Diagnostics Program director Dr. Lecia Sequist. <\/p>\n

But she said not all of those tests have been confirmed to be effective. \u201cIt\u2019s really important for us to make sure to explain to patients what is still experimental and what has really been proven.\u201d<\/p>\n

Big picture, the statistics are clear: The earlier a case of cancer is found, the easier it is to treat and the better chance a patient has at survival. <\/p>\n

More than 99 percent of women diagnosed with breast cancer at the earliest stage live for another five years or more, compared to only 33 percent of those diagnosed when the cancer at its most advanced stage, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data<\/a>. The five-year survival rate for colon cancer is more than 90 percent when the cancer is only in the colon<\/a>. When it spreads, that survival rate drops to just 13 percent, the American Cancer Society reported<\/a>. <\/p>\n

But not everyone needs to be screened for cancer, and the tests themselves can cause harm. CT scans expose patients to small amounts of radiation, while being put under anesthesia for a colonoscopy carries its own risks. Sometimes, screenings identify growths that aren\u2019t actually dangerous, leading to unnecessary and expensive procedures. <\/p>\n

The question remains, however, just how much early detection is worthwhile, for both patients and payers. Cancer screening can be anxiety inducing, uncomfortable, and costly. <\/p>\n

John McDonough, a professor at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, said it\u2019s unclear whether early detection centers add value to patients or serve as revenue drivers for massive health systems \u2014 at the expense of insurers and patients alike. Like many aspects of health care, it\u2019s probably a combination of both. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s almost certainly going to be something that increases the total health care spending in the state,\u201d McDonough said. \u201cThere\u2019s no question about that.\u201d<\/p>\n

For hospitals that treat it, cancer is a money-making enterprise worthy of investment. MGB announced in 2025 that it plans to spend $400 million<\/a> in the next four years augmenting its own cancer center. <\/p>\n

Preventive screening and early detection options \u2014 ranging from blood panels that evaluate genetic mutations to full-body scans meant to detect tumors in their earliest stages \u2014 are multiplying. The market for multicancer early detection tests is expected to double in size to $2.86 billion<\/a> by 2030, according San Francisco research and consulting firm Grand View Research. <\/p>\n

In April, Dana-Farber received a $5 million gift dedicated to cancer prevention and early detection. <\/p>\n

MGB, the state\u2019s largest health system, just expanded its Early Detection and Diagnostics Program in Waltham to an additional space at Brigham and Women\u2019s Hospital in Longwood.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe want to take good care of patients actually diagnosed with cancer. We want to have the cutting edge treatments and clinical trials available for people who have been diagnosed with cancer. But the journey actually starts way before that,\u201d Sequist said. <\/p>\n

Most patients who visit the early detection program at MGB are referred there by a primary care physician who noticed potentially troubling risk factors or physical symptoms. As recently as 10 years ago, doctors would only refer patients with obvious and striking medical histories, like several family members with cancer diagnoses, Sequist said. Now, patients can be seen with lesser family histories or because they work in fields with higher cancer risk, like firefighting or the military. <\/p>\n

\"AnAn undated photo of Jessica Reilly, center, with her parents, Kathy and Dennis. Reilly, now 24, underwent genetic testing to determine her cancer risk after both of her parents had cancer.Jessica Reilly<\/p>\n

That\u2019s how 24-year-old Jessica Reilly found herself in the MGB\u2019s Early Detection office in Waltham. <\/p>\n

Reilly, who lives in New York City but grew up in Wayland, knows intimately what cancer can do to a person and their family. Despite being a nonsmoker, her mother died of lung cancer in 2007, when Reilly was in kindergarten. Then, about four years later, her dad was diagnosed with blood cancer. He has been in remission for more than a decade.<\/p>\n

\u201cI remember his fatigue the most,\u201d Reilly said. \u201cChemo was really, really hard on his body. Physically seeing that, knowing that they experienced that, I would do anything not to go through that myself.\u201d <\/p>\n

Based on her family history, Reilly was a good candidate for genetic testing, but the results were still surprising. Reilly had a BRCA-1 gene mutation, making her much more likely to develop breast or ovarian cancer. It was a curveball, considering Reilly\u2019s dad encouraged her to get genetic testing specifically to look for genetic mutations related to lung cancer. <\/p>\n

Things moved quickly after that. Reilly met with doctors in New York to discuss her options. She doesn\u2019t have cancer, but Reilly\u2019s risks are so elevated \u2014 she had an 80 percent chance of having breast cancer in her lifetime \u2014 that she decided to undergo a preventive double mastectomy. <\/p>\n

\u201cI put myself in [my parents\u2019] shoes,\u201d said Reilly, who is recovering from her first of three surgeries. Her parents, she said, would have wanted to know that they were going to develop cancer, if it meant they could have prevented it or lessened its consequences. <\/p>\n

\u201cAnyone that has gone through cancer I think would make that decision\u201d if they could, Reilly said. <\/p>\n

Screening and diagnostic technology has improved rapidly in recent years, MGB\u2019s Sequist said, especially with the introduction of blood tests that were initially developed to detect certain cancer markers in people who had already been diagnosed. <\/p>\n

It can be difficult for patients to distinguish what each test or scan is for, Sequist said. Some tests measure someone\u2019s future risk of cancer, while others measure whether that person has cancer at the moment of the test. Sequist\u2019s team often helps patients parse through which options make sense, and which ones would be a waste of money. <\/p>\n

\u201cI think these technological advances have really put it more into the public\u2019s mind,\u201d Sequist said. \u201cAlong with increasing sensational stories about young people getting cancer who may be too young for traditional screening.\u201d <\/p>\n

Despite increased attention on the disease in younger populations, cancer mortality in people under 50 decreased for every cancer other than colorectal cancer, according to a recent study by the American Cancer Society<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Cancer mortality has improved because of a number of factors, including better treatment and more prolific screening for common cancers like breast and lung. <\/p>\n

Testing still has a long way to go, said Dr. Betsy O\u2019Donnell, co-director of Dana-Farber\u2019s Centers for Early Detection and Interception. <\/p>\n

Figuring out which tests work best for which cancers is an ongoing process that requires the same caution and care as evaluating different cancer treatments, O\u2019Donnell said. Early detection programs can play an instrumental role in that process. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re holding the BlackBerry and iPhone 1 in our hands right now, and the BlackBerry may be gone in the next couple years, and we\u2019ll be onto the iPhone 18,\u201d said O\u2019Donnell. \u201cI\u2019m willing to be a part of interactive science to make it better, because I think there\u2019s such a huge unmet need here.\u201d <\/p>\n

Marin Wolf can be reached at marin.wolf@globe.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"In the last few years, MGB and Dana-Farber have each formed centers dedicated to finding and researching cancers…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":621256,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[59],"tags":[8731,269350,269351,269352,97,252,253],"class_list":["post-621255","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-health-care","tag-boston","tag-brigham-and-womens-hospital-cq","tag-dr-lecia-sequist-cq","tag-early-cancer-detection-program","tag-health","tag-health-care","tag-healthcare"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/621255","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=621255"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/621255\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/621256"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=621255"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=621255"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=621255"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}