Lay summary
This translational grant proposes to build on exciting BCRT-funded science that has led to the identification of two RNA markers in the blood, which together may be able to indicate whether a woman has breast cancer or not. We now want to study additional markers to see if, using a combination of markers, we can make our test more accurate and ready for larger scale trials. We will further refine our methods to detect these markers in the blood, and then we will measure them in increasing numbers of breast cancer patients, compared to blood samples from healthy women. We will also assess these markers before and after surgical removal of breast tumours. By combining these markers with the patient's clinical data, we hope to define a simple blood test that can be used in screening for breast cancer or to indicate whether a breast cancer patient has relapsed.