Anh Pham, Professor Mark Molloy, Benita Tse, Gabriella Parrilla, Matthew McKay
Game-changing blood test to detect bowel cancer
Studying polyps Another focus of the research is improving the follow-up process after a positive screening result. Currently, patients with a positive stool test undergo a colonoscopy, where clinicians look for polyps– small growths in the gut lining that can develop into cancer if not removed. Gastroenterologists and colorectal surgeons remove the polyps which are then assessed by pathologists, who examine their size and appearance to determine when the patient should return for a follow-up “surveillance” colonoscopy. But current guidelines as to when this should happen are based on limited evidence and can be improved.
It’s mailed to people over 50, but Professor Molloy says because it requires them to collect the sample themselves, only around 40 per cent return a completed test. “They don’t like handling a stool sample, and early cancers may not leak blood so they can go undetected by this method,” he said. “We’re very interested in whether we can move to a blood test, and not just any blood test. We’re working to do this from a few drops of blood collected from a finger prick.” Working with scientists from Sangui Bio, a biotechnology partner of the Kolling Institute, Professor Molloy has analysed proteins in blood samples from around 1,200 patients. “We can definitely see a signature in the blood from the finger prick sampling that’s linked to the presence of polyps and early cancers, but more research is needed.”
Bowel cancer is the third most common type of cancer in Australia and treating it is both costly and complex. Alarmingly, rates are rising among people under 50, and researchers still don’t know why. It is for these reasons that Professor Mark Molloy is on a mission to prevent the disease in the first place. Based in the Kolling Institute, the leading bowel cancer research specialist is running several projects looking at early detection. He says the first promising pathway is a blood test. Currently, the main screening method is a government-funded test that detects blood in the stool.
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KOLLINGNEWS | SEPTEMBER 2025
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