August 2026: Ebenstein, JaxBio Technologies, and colleagues develop rapid, low-cost blood test for lung cancer

Prof. Yuval Ebenstein, Edmond J. Safra affiliate (Chemistry), and colleagues from TAU, in collaboration with JaxBio Technologies, Bnai Zion Medical Center, the English Hospital Nazareth, Sheba Medical Center, and Bar-Ilan University, have developed a low-cost blood test that could help detect lung cancer using light-based analysis of DNA.

Published in Nature Precision Oncology, the study presents a novel alternative to complex and expensive DNA sequencing. Instead of reading the DNA sequence itself, the technology identifies a cancer-specific chemical "fingerprint" by attaching fluorescent molecules to cancer-related DNA changes and analyzing the resulting light patterns on a proprietary DNA chip.

The research team trained a computational model using blood samples from 103 participants, including 51 lung cancer patients and 52 healthy controls. In a blinded validation study, the test correctly identified 93.1% of lung cancer cases (stages 2-4) and 90.3% of healthy participants. It also distinguished between the two main lung cancer subtypes: non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and small cell lung cancer (SCLC).

Beyond detection, preliminary findings suggest that the test may eventually help monitor treatment response. Specifically, researchers observed that DNA signatures in a responding patient became more similar to those of healthy individuals, while little change was seen in a non-responding patient. However, larger studies are needed to confirm this potential application.

The test can currently be completed within two to three days at an estimated cost of $60 per sample - less than one-tenth the cost of sequencing-based approaches.

To advance the technology toward clinical use, JaxBio Technologies, co-founded by Prof. Ebenstein, and established together with TAU, has raised 12 million dollars and is conducting clinical trials in hospitals across Israel and Europe.

While the test is still experimental and not yet approved for routine medical use, the researchers believe it could eventually complement CT screening by providing a faster, simpler, and more accessible tool for lung cancer detection and patient monitoring.