cancer cells, showing the blood vessel formation providing the cells with oxygens and nutrients.

Beautiful but deadlyPhotograph: Science Photo Library

Feb 25th 2026|5 min read

GRAIL IS AN American biotech company with an ambitious goal: to develop a blood test for the early detection of over 50 types of cancer. It will not be easy. On February 19th the company announced that its test, called Galleri, had fallen at its latest hurdle. Over the course of a three-year trial that involved 142,000 people aged between 50 and 77, half were screened with Galleri in addition to the usual tests recommended for their age. The hope was that it would spot enough early-stage cancers to reduce the number of late-stage cancer diagnoses. It did not.

Baby bottle with measurement markings and a smiling pink nipple on a blue background.

Will one-stop blood tests for cancer save lives?