HCA Healthcare and GRAIL collaborate to advance comprehensive cancer care with multi-cancer early detection screening

We are proud to announce a strategic collaboration with Sarah Cannon Cancer Institute, part of HCA Healthcare, and GRAIL, LLC, a healthcare company with a mission of detecting cancer early when it can be cured, to advance comprehensive cancer care through early detection. Starting today, GRAIL’s Galleri^® multi-cancer early detection (MCED) test will be available to patients who meet screening criteria at select HCA Healthcare physician practices.

More than 600,000 people die from cancer each year in the U.S., according to the American Cancer Society. This is in large part because some of the deadliest cancers are found too late when outcomes are often poor. Recommended screening tests save lives, but only cover five cancer types in the U.S.: breast, colon, cervical, prostate, and, in high-risk adults, lung. In fact, approximately 70% of cancer deaths have no recommended early detection screening.

The Galleri test, available by prescription only, is the first clinically validated MCED test that can detect a shared cancer signal across more than 50 types of cancers using a simple blood draw. The MCED test offers a fundamentally different blood-based approach intended to be used in addition to recommended single cancer screenings.

Recognizing the Galleri test is a new paradigm in cancer screening, Sarah Cannon Cancer Institute will leverage its leading nurse navigation program to support patients and providers through the diagnostic journey following a positive Galleri test result. Plans to enhance patient experience and outcomes include standardizing patient and provider education, developing evidence-based diagnostic pathways, and facilitating timely evaluations.

HCA Healthcare is also participating in the PATHFINDER 2 multi-center interventional study of the Galleri test in Nashville, Asheville, Austin, and Denver. The company’s research partner, Sarah Cannon Research Institute (SCRI) and its contract research organization, will conduct a retrospective study focused on patient and provider outcome-based metrics and quality of care related to MCED testing as part of the initiative. 

“HCA Healthcare and Sarah Cannon are aligned with GRAIL’s mission to improve the detection of cancer at earlier stages, when the chances of successful treatment are higher,” said Jeffrey Venstrom, MD, chief medical officer at GRAIL. “In addition to HCA Healthcare offering the Galleri test, the use of Sarah Cannon Cancer Institute’s nurse navigation program to support both patients and healthcare providers around MCED screening is the first of its kind. This program will provide critical insights about cancer detection and appropriate diagnostic follow-up.”

Talk to your primary care physician to determine if Galleri may be right for you. To learn more about MCED testing, visit Sarah Cannon’s website.