Prenatal Blood Tests Reveal Hidden Cancers in Expectant Mothers

Prenatal blood tests can occasionally detect hidden cancers in moms-to-be, alongside screening for fetal disorders.

Many expectant mothers choose to undergo blood tests during pregnancy to screen for fetal conditions like Down syndrome. Occasionally, these tests uncover an unexpected finding — signs of an undiagnosed cancer in the mother, according to a study reported by The Associated Press earlier this week ().

Prenatal Screening Test
Prenatal screening involves various tests to assess the risk of the unborn baby to be born with a chromosomal anomaly, neural tube defect or any birth defect.

‘Did You Know?
7 to 12 percent of pregnant women experience moderate to severe depression. Partners may also be at risk for depression during the pregnancy. #medindia #pregnancy #depression’

Survival Rates and Advanced Cancer Cases

Among 107 pregnant women with abnormal test results, 52 were eventually diagnosed with cancer. While most received treatment and achieved remission, seven with advanced cases unfortunately passed away.

"They looked like healthy, young women and they reported themselves as being healthy," said Diana Bianchi, the senior author of the government study published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

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Lymphoma: The Most Common Diagnosis

Of the discovered cancers, lymphoma blood cancers were the most common, followed by colon and breast cancers, according to the study.

Blood Test Discovers Fetal Genetic Disorders
In the future, a straightforward blood test could enable the screening of pregnant women for severe genetic diseases in their unborn children.

Cell-Free DNA Sequencing

The blood test is called cell-free DNA sequencing. It looks for fetal problems in DNA fragments shed from the placenta into the mother's bloodstream. It also can pick up DNA fragments shed by cancer cells.

Reference:

Prenatal blood test sometimes hints at cancer in moms-to-be: study - (https://english.news.cn/northamerica/20241207/0a592a3cda2f4a5888ab7ef708e1c0f3/c.html)

Source-Eurekalert

Simple Foetal Blood Test Soon To Predict Chromosomal Abnormalities
Researchers in The Netherlands are on the verge of developing a simple, prenatal blood test that would be able to detect accurately chromosomal abnormalities in the developing foetus.