NHS-Galleri trial

Monday 27 September 2021

We are delighted that the Northern Cancer Alliance is supporting recruitment to the NHS-Galleri trial, which aims to evaluate a new test which uses a single blood sample to test for many different cancers. The test is designed to be used alongside other cancer screening tests.  The trial is led by the Cancer Research UK & King’s College London Cancer Prevention Trials Unit in partnership with the NHS and healthcare company GRAIL, who have developed the Galleri™ test. 

The NHS is supporting the study to see if the test can help the NHS to find more cancers at an early stage.  As one of eight alliances involved nationally, we will be supporting the trial team to recruit healthy volunteers, aged 50-77 with no history of cancer in the last 3 years, and representative of the UK population. Recruitment in our Cancer Alliance region is due to begin this autumn. 

Ensuring that health professionals are informed about the trial is a high priority. Briefing materials for health professionals will be made available over the coming weeks. More information will also become available about the NHS-Galleri trial on the trial website  

The trial is aiming to recruit 140,000 people across all eight trial regions and eligible participants in North East and North Cumbria will start receiving letters inviting them to register to join the trial from October 2021 (Hartlepool starting 11/10/21) to mid-2022. The trial team are advising people of their right to choose to not receive an invitation to participate through posters and newspaper adverts before invitation letters are sent. 

Participants who consent to take part will be asked to provide a blood sample at a local mobile clinic. They will be invited back for a second and third blood sample at yearly intervals. Detection of a cancer signal by the test does not confirm a diagnosis of cancer and will be followed up by diagnostic evaluation. Participants whose results indicate a cancer signal will be referred directly to an appropriate local NHS 2-ww cancer referral pathway.  GPs will be informed of the test result but do not have to make the referral.  The trial has been designed to minimise the impact on GP practices, although we recognise that GPs or other health professionals may be asked by patients about the trial.