Blood test for breast cancer.

The Telegraph (yes, I know, but…) gives hope to the potentially millions of women fed up with the regular ritual of mammograms with news that a new blood test can detect cancer risk decades in advance:

Researchers have identified a ‘genetic switch’, carried by one in five women, that doubles their risk of developing breast cancer.

Experts described the breakthrough by scientists at Imperial College London as “exciting” and said signs of the disease could be detected “many decades in advance”.

A strong association was found between molecular changes in a white blood cell gene called ATM and breast cancer risk.

The changes are also associated with lymphoma and leukaemia meaning the test could have implications in other cancers.