UK Scientists Develop Blood Test That Can Spot Even One Lung Cancer Cell

Scientists in the United Kingdom have created a new blood test that can detect even a single lung cancer cell in the bloodstream. This could make it much easier to diagnose lung cancer early and monitor how well treatments are working.

The test has been developed by researchers at University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust (UHNM) in partnership with Keele University, Loughborough University, and other UK institutes.

The study, published in Applied Spectroscopy, explains how a technique called Fourier Transform Infrared (FT-IR) microspectroscopy can identify cancer cells by analysing their unique “chemical fingerprint.” The method uses a beam of infrared light — similar to the light used in TV remote controls, but far more powerful — to scan blood samples and detect cancer cells with high accuracy.

Circulating tumour cells, or CTCs, are cancer cells that break away from a tumour and move through the bloodstream. These cells can help doctors understand how a cancer is growing, whether it is spreading, and how well a patient is responding to therapy.

However, current techniques to detect CTCs are complex, expensive, slow, and sometimes miss cancer cells if they change their appearance or behaviour while travelling in the blood.

The UHNM team’s new method is different. It is simpler, cheaper, and can be used on ordinary glass slides already available in most pathology laboratories. This makes it much easier to introduce into routine hospital work.

To test the method, the researchers analysed a blood sample from a 77-year-old lung cancer patient. Using advanced scanning and computer analysis, they were able to find one single cancer cell among thousands of normal blood cells. The result was later confirmed through specialist testing, proving that the technique works.

Professor Josep Sulé-Suso, the lead author of the study and an oncology specialist at UHNM, said that this discovery could allow doctors to track cancer in real time through a simple blood test.

He explained that this approach may lead to earlier diagnosis, personalised treatment, and reduce the need for invasive procedures such as biopsies. He also noted that this technology could one day be used for many types of cancer, not just lung cancer.

Researchers will now test this method on larger groups of patients with the goal of creating a fast, automated blood test that can be added to NHS cancer care. The project received support from UHNM Charity, the North Staffordshire Medical Institute, and collaborating universities.