Trident Medical Center Joins Sarah Cannon Research Institute in National Early Cancer Detection Study

by | Sep 27, 2018 | Portfolio News

Trident Medical Center of Charleston, South Carolina, announced that it and Sarah Cannon, the Cancer Institute of HCA Healthcare, will participate in a study called STRIVE, which focuses on developing a test for early cancer detection.

The STRIVE study is designed to determine if a blood test can identify genomic material arising from tumors so that breast cancer and other cancers can be detected at their earliest stages. The blood test will be given along with mammograms as part of the research.

“Today’s announcement marks a major milestone in Trident’s commitment to women’s health,” said Brian Burke, MD, a radiologist who will serve as the study’s lead on-site physician. “We hope the study participants from the Lowcountry and around the United States will one day soon be able to say, ‘I made a difference.’”

GRAIL Inc., the study’s sponsor, is seeking to enroll 120,000 women across the U.S. Participants will provide a blood sample and complete a short questionnaire at the time of their regular screening mammogram. Women who participate in the study will have their health records monitored for up to five years for new cancer diagnoses.

“By participating in this exciting research effort, women in South Carolina’s Lowcountry will join other women around the country to help GRAIL scientists in their efforts to develop a test that is intended to enhance our ability to detect cancer at earlier and more treatable stages,” said Dax Kurbegov, MD, the principle investigator of the STRIVE study at Sarah Cannon. “The study is designed to help develop a test that can identify tiny fragments of genomic material that may signal the presence of breast or other cancers.”

GRAIL, a McKesson Ventures portfolio company, is a healthcare company whose mission is to detect cancer early, when it can be cured. GRAIL is using the power of high-intensity sequencing, population-scale clinical studies, and state-of-the-art computer science and data science to enhance specific understanding of cancer biology, and to develop and commercialize pioneering products for the early detection of cancer.

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