Dr. Tom Beer
Chief Medical Officer, Multi-Cancer Early Detection, Exact Sciences
Dr. Steven Bellamy
Chief Medical Officer, International, Exact Sciences
Barry D. Stein
President & CEO, Colorectal Cancer Canada
Allison Barry
Senior Director, Portfolio Communications, Exact Sciences
Dr. Zia Poonja
Medical Oncologist, BC Cancer, Victoria, BC
As cancer screening evolves, a new blood test shows promise in identifying signals associated with 50+ cancer types and subtypes before symptoms appear.
Canada’s current cancer screening programs are limited to breast, cervical, colorectal, and lung.1 Multi-cancer early detection (MCED) is a promising innovation that can detect early signals for numerous cancer types and subtypes using a simple blood test. Mediaplanet recently spoke with a panel of experts and a patient to explore how the new Cancerguard™ MCED test may help address screening gaps in cancers where no routine screening currently exists and support earlier diagnosis.
Dr. Tom Beer, Chief Medical Officer, Multi-Cancer Early Detection, Exact Sciences
What is MCED?
MCED is based on a single blood-based test. The “why” behind is that most cancer diagnoses occur after symptoms appear. Whereas traditional screening covers only a small number of cancers and is typically focused on the organ or interest, the MCED strategy is to detect many cancer signals simultaneously and therefore expand the reach of screening from a few cancers to many.
Dr. Steven Bellamy, Chief Medical Officer, International, Exact Sciences
What is the scientific foundation behind Cancerguard?
Cancerguard leverages multiple biomarker classes in the blood that are common across many cancers and can help detect signals associated with over 50 cancer types and subtypes. It represents a significant advancement in cancer screening, because it shifts the focus from reactive, symptom-based diagnosis, to proactive, early, pre-symptom detection.
Barry D. Stein, President & CEO, Colorectal Cancer Canada
Where are the current cancer screening gaps?
Barry D. Stein: 60 percent of cancers having no screening programs, but we also lack full participation in the ones we do have2. Knowing that many cancers are still diagnosed at the late stages, having another test like Cancerguard to complement established screenings would give us a real opportunity to reach more people earlier.
Allison Barry, Senior Director, Portfolio Communications, Exact Sciences
Could you share your story with the Cancerguard test?
Allison Barry: Because I was closely involved in the U.S. launch of Cancerguard, I wanted to understand the entire process, so I took the test. I received a positive result and was diagnosed with Stage 1 ovarian cancer after follow up diagnostic imaging3. Shortly thereafter I had surgery where they removed a 22-centimeter tumour. Fortunately, the cancer was contained, and I didn’t require any follow-up treatment and am now cancer free.
How has this experience influenced your outlook?
I saw first-hand how different the journey can look when cancer is caught early. It means less intensive treatment, a shorter recovery, and fewer long-term complications. When cancer is diagnosed later, it’s a much longer journey. Being able to achieve early detection makes a huge difference not just to patients but to families, finances, and the healthcare system. I’m now a passionate advocate for this technology.
Dr. Zia Poonja, Medical Oncologist, BC Cancer, Victoria, BC
Why is innovation so necessary in cancer screening?
Dr. Poonja: Innovation matters because our current approach leaves many gaps and the biggest thing for me as an oncologist is that too many cancers are diagnosed at a late stage when they are more difficult to treat.
What is the hope and promise of new approaches like MCED?
While these technologies are still evolving, the science is sound. We can now do a blood-based assay to detect the presence of cancer signals such as tumour DNA, proteins, and methylation patterns in individuals blood when they are asymptomatic. This allows us to be quicker in turning a positive signal into a clear diagnosis. The hope is that it closes the cancer screening gap for many cancers and leads to detecting cancers earlier when they are more treatable.
For more details and to learn more about availability, please visit: cancerguard.ca.
References:
- Government of Canada. Canadian Cancer Statistics. Available at: https://cdn.cancer.ca/-/media/files/research/cancer-statistics/2025-statistics/2025_PDF_FINAL_EN.pdf. Accessed January 9, 2026. ↩︎
- Government of Canada. Canadian Cancer Statistics. Available at: https://cdn.cancer.ca/-/media/files/research/cancer-statistics/2025-statistics/2025_PDF_FINAL_EN.pdf. Accessed January 9, 2026. ↩︎
- A positive result means the test found a signal that may indicate the presence of cancer. Follow-up imaging and further evaluation are needed to locate and confirm a diagnosis, or determine that cancer is not present.
Results may include false positive or false negative findings. For important safety information, limitations, and intended use, visit http://www.cancerguard.ca/ ↩︎
