New Breast Cancer Blood Test Has Launched
A novel screening tool aims to aid women with dense breast tissue in detecting cancer earlier.
Updated on Oct. 2, 2026 in Cancer
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Would you choose an additional blood test to supplement your regular breast cancer screening?
Astrin Biosciences has released the Certitude blood test to help identify breast cancer. This screening option is now available to patients in 48 states.
Why it matters
Dense breast tissue often obscures tumors during standard mammograms, potentially delaying necessary care. This test offers an additional screening method for women at high risk for breast cancer.
The Certitude test reports an identification accuracy exceeding 90% and a false negative rate under 1%. These performance figures are based on internal laboratory processing of 7,000 specific proteins per blood sample.
The players
Astrin Biosciences
A St. Paul, Minnesota-based laboratory company focused on developing protein-based diagnostic blood tests for oncology.
The details
The Certitude test functions by isolating 7,000 specific proteins from a patient blood sample. A mass spectrometer generates data from the sample in 20 minutes, which is then processed through artificial intelligence analysis to identify potential signs of cancer.
Timeline
October 2026: The Certitude blood test became available in 48 states.
Health Landscape
This development represents a major shift in the liquid biopsy diagnostic paradigm, moving toward protein-based analysis for early cancer detection. It aims to address a long-standing gap in traditional imaging for patients with dense breast tissue.
If you have dense breast tissue, which affects about half of women over 40, this test may be a topic worth discussing with your doctor to determine if it is appropriate for your health history. Always coordinate with your physician to understand how new screening tools fit into your existing care plan.
The takeaway
Detecting cancer early is critical, especially when anatomical factors like dense tissue make standard mammograms difficult to read. Track your own breast health history and consult your physician about whether additional screenings are right for your risk profile.
Further reading
For more on the current standard of care and advancements in diagnostics, visit Cancer.
Source note: This article includes information reported by FOX 9 Minneapolis-St. Paul.
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Would you choose an additional blood test to supplement your regular breast cancer screening?
