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A senior man in his allotment showing off his home grown vegetables with his son

The NHS-Galleri trial is looking into the use of the Galleri® blood test to see if it can help the NHS to detect cancer early when it is usually easier to treat.

Around 140,000 volunteers aged 50 to 77 have registered to take part in the trial after receiving an invitation letter from the NHS. 

As a participant, you will soon be invited to book your third (24 month) appointment. 

More about the trial

Trial appointments

Registration is closed

The NHS-Galleri trial is not accepting new participants at this time — registration is closed.

You will be invited to attend three appointments over two years, about 12 months apart. 

Blood is collected from people up to three times in the trial, at their first, second and third appointments. These appointments are about 12 months apart.

By attending all three appointments, you will be helping research to understand how the NHS might be able to offer the test to people in the future.

You will be sent a letter when it is time to book your next appointment

Appointments will take place at mobile clinics and will last about 15 minutes. You will be asked to provide a blood sample and fill in a short health survey.

Your next appointment

Changing your mind

You can change your mind about taking part at any point during the trial. There are no consequences, and you do not have to give a reason why. 

You can tell the trial team if you no longer want to take part. Any information and samples that have already been collected will be kept and used. You will not be invited for further appointments or asked to provide any more information. 

Your data in the trial

Test and control groups

Half of the people in the trial are in the test group. Their blood samples will be tested with the Galleri test. They will only be told a result if their blood sample shows a cancer signal. If a cancer signal is not detected they will not receive a test result but they will be sent a letter to confirm their sample has been received. 

Half of the people in the trial are in the control group. Their blood samples will be stored and may be tested in the future. They will not receive any results, not even after the trial is finished. A control group is important in research like this to provide a comparison with the test group.

A computer chose the groups at random when people joined the trial so there was a 50:50 chance (like the toss of a coin) of being in either group.

You will not be told if you are in the test or the control group

If people know which group they are in, it might alter the way they behave about their health. This could make the research results less clear or reliable.

More about test and control groups

What results can you expect to receive

Most people on the trial will not get a test result. Only people who have a cancer signal detected will be given their result.

If you are in the control group, or if no cancer signal was detected, you will receive a letter to confirm that your blood sample has been safely received. This normally takes around 30 days to arrive after you have had your blood taken, but may sometimes take longer.

If you are in the test group and a cancer signal is detected in your blood, the trial team’s research nurse will contact you by phone to let you know your result and arrange an appointment at an NHS hospital for further tests.

Attending your usual cancer screening appointments

It is very important that you keep attending your usual cancer screening appointments when you are invited to do so. You should also make an appointment to talk to your GP if you notice any symptoms that are new or unusual for you.

Who will get a test result

Ready to book your appointment?

If you have received your invitation and are ready to book your next appointment, you can do so here.

Book your appointment