In a study published in Nature Medicine, just days after their labs were severely damaged in the June 2025 Iranian missile attack, Profs. Liran Shlush and Amos Tanay present findings that may lead to an innovative blood test for detecting a person’s risk of developing leukemia. This test may potentially replace the invasive diagnostic procedure of bone marrow sampling.
The Shlush and Tanay teams, led by Dr. Nili Furer, Nimrod Rappoport, and Oren Milman, in collaboration with physicians and researchers in Israel and the United States, tracked changes in blood-forming stem cells, including the emergence of genetic changes in these cells in about one-third of people over the age of 40, with a focus on changes associated with a heightened risk for myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), an age-related condition in which blood stem cells fail to mature properly into functional blood cells.
In the new study, the scientists showed that rare blood stem cells, which occasionally exit the bone marrow and enter the bloodstream, carry diagnostic information about MDS—and that with a simple blood test and advanced single-cell genetic sequencing, it is possible to identify early signs of the syndrome and even assess a person’s risk of developing blood cancer.
Diagnosing MDS and assessing its severity is crucial, as it can lead to severe anemia and may progress to acute myeloid leukemia, one of the most common blood cancers in adults. Until now, diagnosis has relied on bone marrow sampling, a painful procedure that requires local anesthesia.
The researchers also discovered that the migrating stem cells can serve as a clock for our chronological age, and that in males, their population changes earlier than in women in a way that increases the risk of cancer. This finding may explain the higher prevalence of blood cancers among men.
The researchers believe that using the test to diagnose MDS and leukemia is only the beginning; in the future, it could be applied to a range of other blood-related disorders. The current findings are being tested in a large-scale clinical trial at several medical centers worldwide.
Prof. Liran Shlush is Head of the Miriam and Aaron Gutwirth Medical School and Senior Associate to the Dean. His research is supported by the Abisch-Frenkel RNA Therapeutics Center; the Laura and Anthony Beck and Family Fund for Research in a Data-Driven Approach to Fighting Blood Cancer; the EKARD Institute for Cancer Diagnosis Research; Dina Härtz-de Rooij; Magnus Konow in honour of his mother Olga Konow Rappaport; Redhill Foundation – Sam and Jean Rothberg Charitable Trust; and the Sagol Institute for Longevity Research. The Applebaum Foundation Research Fellow Chair funds a Staff Scientist in Prof. Shlush’s lab.
Prof. Amos Tanay is supported by the Adelis Foundation; the Laura and Anthony Beck and Family Fund for Research in a Data-Driven Approach to Fighting Blood Cancer; and the Moross Integrated Cancer Center. Prof. Tanay is the incumbent of The W. Garfield Weston Professorial Chair.