Every year, about 90,000 postmenopausal women in England get referred for checks after heavy bleeding. Around 10,000 of these women are diagnosed with womb cancer, and sadly, about 2,700 die from it annually. The usual process involves pelvic exams and transvaginal ultrasound scans, which can be uncomfortable and invasive.
Now, several NHS hospitals are preparing to use a new AI-powered blood test called PinPoint. This test can assess the risk of womb cancer before any invasive checks happen. It looks at around 30 blood markers and uses machine learning to sort patients into low, elevated, or high risk groups.
PinPoint costs about £30 per test. It’s already been used across different cancer pathways, including lung, gastrointestinal, and head and neck cancers. The latest trial involved 16,481 patients from urgent cancer referral pathways in Yorkshire. Out of these, nearly 3,000 had suspected gynaecological cancer, and 114 women were diagnosed with cancer during the trial.
The test identified 99.1% of cancers as elevated or high risk. It also gave a negative predictive value of 99.8% for women in the lowest-risk group. That means it almost never missed cancers in women who tested low risk. More than 99% of endometrial cancers were caught by this test.
A New Way to Spot Cancer Early
Dr Richard Savage, chief scientist at PinPoint Data Science, explained how the test works. “It gives you a score, and if the score is low, you’re going to be at low risk. If it’s higher, you’re at higher risk,” he said. He added that for women with a very low score, it could spare them from invasive tests that are stressful and unpleasant.
Professor Sean Duffy, PinPoint’s chief medical officer, said the test helps clinicians prioritize patients by how urgently they need care. “The accuracy we have seen in this pathway in identifying more than 99 per cent of endometrial cancers is remarkable by any clinical standard,” he said. He also highlighted that the test safely rules out women at very low risk, potentially sparing thousands from painful procedures.
Rolling Out AI Tools Across the NHS
Mid Yorkshire NHS Teaching Trust plans to use the PinPoint test for six types of gynaecological and upper gastrointestinal cancers. Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust will use it specifically for gynaecological cancers.
In addition to this blood test, the NHS is updating its app with AI triage tools. This AI will ask questions that adapt based on patient answers and guide them to the right service, like their GP, pharmacy, or emergency care. Over the next year, more than 200,000 patients will use this AI triage tool, and it should be available to all NHS app users by April 2028.
A trial at a GP practice in Sussex showed a 29% drop in phone queues for appointments after introducing this AI triage. The NHS is also testing AI that records and transcribes conversations between patients and staff. This tool lets staff spend up to 25% more time directly with patients.
These AI note-taking programs are expanding in several NHS trusts, including Alder Hey Children’s NHS Foundation Trust and Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust. Sir Jim Mackey, chief executive of NHS England, said this tech overhaul will transform NHS services and help people get the right care faster.
Voices from the Community
Alongside cancer diagnosis, new non-invasive tests for endometriosis are also emerging. This condition happens when cells like those lining the womb grow elsewhere in the body. Two new tests were recommended recently in draft guidance for the NHS in England and Wales.
Emma Cox, chief executive of Endometriosis UK, said these tests must come with education for GPs and nurses. She stressed that this would help reduce delays in diagnosis and stop pain from being overlooked.
Ami Robertson shared her story of living with endometriosis pain from age 16. She was often told her symptoms were something else, like irritable bowel syndrome. “No one should have to wait years to be believed,” she said. Ami also said she doubted herself for a long time.
Sharan Uppal spoke about her daughter Simran’s diagnosis. The new test gave them the confidence to push for a referral. “That test opened doors for us to get Simran the help she needed,” she said.
Concerns and Future Steps
Health Secretary James Murray praised the NHS’s investment in new technology, saying it builds on the NHS legacy. But the Royal College of Nursing warned that basic IT infrastructure still needs improvement. They also raised concerns about AI safety, accuracy, privacy, and training for staff using new tools.
Stuart Andrew, Tory shadow health secretary, said innovations must come with fully funded plans that deliver value for taxpayers. Meanwhile, researchers are working on a new cancer blood test that could tell patients if their cancer is returning, offering hope for future improvements.
The NHS is clearly embracing AI to improve care. From blood tests that spot cancer risk to smarter app triage and note-taking tools, the goal is to reduce invasive procedures and speed up diagnosis. This means less stress for patients and better use of NHS resources.
Based on
- NHS AI blood test could reduce invasive womb cancer checks — artificialintelligence-news.com
- New cancer blood test could spare thousands of patients from invasive gynaecological exams | The Independent — independent.co.uk
- New AI feature will be added to NHS app in ‘major overhaul’ of tech | The Independent — independent.co.uk
- Cancer returning? Blood test might be able to tell — ctvnews.ca
- GPs to offer two new tests to help spot endometriosis — bbc.com
