A new blood test developed at UCLA could screen for several cancers and other diseases from a single vial of blood, according to a study published in August 2026 in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The tool, called MethylScan, reads DNA methylation patterns across the genome and detected liver, lung, ovarian and stomach cancers in early testing.
The researchers stressed that larger prospective trials are needed before the test could be used for routine screening.
How the test reads a drop of blood
MethylScan focuses on cell-free DNA, small fragments of genetic material that spill into the bloodstream when cells die. Rather than searching for genetic mutations, the UCLA team measures methylation, chemical tags that regulate how genes switch on or off in different tissues.
"DNA methylation reflects the health status of a tissue. It's a very informative signal," said Wenyuan Li, professor of pathology and laboratory medicine and co-corresponding author on the study.
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The group used an enzyme trick to strip out most of the DNA that comes from ordinary blood cells, which sharpened signals from other organs and drove sequencing costs down. Effective sequencing would cost less than $20 per sample if per-gigabase prices stay under $4, the paper reports.
What MethylScan picked up
The team analyzed plasma from 1,061 people, including patients with liver, lung, ovarian or stomach cancer, people with hepatitis B or C, alcohol-related liver disease, metabolic-associated liver disease, benign lung nodules, and healthy volunteers.
Across all cancer stages, the test flagged roughly 63 percent of cases at 98 percent specificity. For early-stage cancers, sensitivity dropped to about 55 percent at the same specificity.
In a separate analysis of high-risk patients, MethylScan caught close to 80 percent of liver cancers. It also distinguished between different types of liver disease with about 85 percent accuracy, Medical News Today reported.
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The methylation signals also helped point to the tissue where the abnormal DNA came from, a step the researchers say matters for follow-up because a positive blood test needs to be paired with imaging or other checks aimed at the right organ.
Not ready for the clinic yet
Senior author Jasmine Zhou, professor of pathology and laboratory medicine at UCLA, framed the goal as catching disease sooner.
"Early detection is crucial. Survival rates are far higher when cancers are caught before they spread," Zhou said.
For now, MethylScan is a research tool. Larger prospective studies will be needed to see how it performs in general screening. In the United States, no multi-cancer blood test is currently FDA-approved. GRAIL's Galleri, the most advanced product on the market, is heading to an FDA advisory committee review scheduled for September 23, 2026, according to the company.
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Anyone worried about symptoms or with a family history of cancer should talk with their own doctor about which screening tests are currently recommended for their situation.
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This article is made and published by Jesper Bengtson, who may have used AI in the preparation.