Implementation and validation of liquid biopsies as a diagnostic tool for early breast cancer detection in South African black women

As life expectancy rises across Africa, the emergence of non-communicable diseases including breast cancer as a cause of mortality has dramatically increased. Access to early, precise diagnosis of breast cancer is currently absent within the South African public health system, disproportionately affecting black women in poor and/or rural households. Access to radiography or biopsies is limited to tertiary hospitals which are concentrated in larger urban centres burdening poor/rural patients with long-distance travel costs and time delays. Hence, alternative methods for cancer detection are sorely needed to improve the health of the South African female population. We have recently developed an affordable and cost-effective screening tool that enables sensitive multi-cancer detection and typing using shallow whole-genome sequencing (sWGS) data of cell-free DNA from a simple blood draw. During this project, we will collaborate with a group of South African researchers to validate and implement the liquid biopsy analysis for breast cancer detection in South Africa. If proven valid, our approach has the potential to be used as an affordable screening tool to enable early cancer detection and faster treatment decisions significantly improving patient care. In addition, the know-how and infrastructure established within this project will serve as a foundation for our future collaboration, to develop and implementation this novel diagnostic tool for use against other cancers.