Pittsburg, PA
Pittsburgh doctor hopes FDA-approved colon cancer blood tests boosts screening rates
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — A simple blood test to screen for colorectal cancer was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
According to the American Cancer Society, 53,000 people will die of colorectal cancer this year and less than 60 percent follow screening guidelines. Doctors are hoping the newly approved screening tool will help change that.
“I’m very happy that we have an additional tool in our toolbox to help people get screened for colon cancer,” said Dr. James McCormick, chief of colon and rectal surgery at Allegheny Health Network.
Dr. McCormick is excited about the FDA-approved first-of-its-kind blood test. It’s meant for people 45 and older with an average risk for the disease.
“You just get your blood drawn. What they’re doing is looking in the blood for circulating tumor DNA. So, DNA that the tumor will have released into the blood, and it would be able to detect that,” Dr. McCormick said.
In Guardant Health’s clinical trials, the blood test was 83 percent accurate in detecting cancer that’s already formed.
“That’s someone who’s already has a cancer. For the precancer solutions, unfortunately, it’s down in the 13 to 20% range that it can pick that up. So, it’s not going to pick up those polyps before they become cancer,” he said.
The Shield test is not a replacement for colonoscopies. Any positive blood test result would then require a colonoscopy.
“It’s different from a colonoscopy, which is the traditional screening test that we offer people, where we can take precancerous tumors at the time of the colonoscopy and remove them before they can become cancerous tumors. That’s still the best screening test, and really the only test that you should have if you have any symptoms at any age,” Dr. McCormick said.
McCormick reiterated that people who get symptoms at any age should get screened and that everyone should be screened for colon cancer at age 45. He said despite efforts to spread the word, 20 or 25 percent of people never get screened.
He hopes the blood test will help boost the rate of screenings and save more lives.
“If there’s a reason that they’re not getting screened that is solved by the Shield test, then we’ll take it. We’ll get them in that way,” Dr. McCormick said.
This approval comes at a time when more people have been developing colon cancer at younger ages.
“We’re even seeing patients in their 20s and 30s with colon cancer, even with no family history. And we have no idea why or who is going to be affected by this,” Dr. McCormick said.
He said never to ignore symptoms. If something is different with your bowel, fight for yourself and make sure you get the test you need.
“Anytime there’s bleeding, there’s abdominal pain, anytime there’s a change in the way your bowels work that persists more than just a few weeks, definitely call your doctor and insist upon getting a colonoscopy,” Dr. McCormick said.
The Shield test has been used by doctors for high-risk surveillance after treatment. A stool test is another screening tool that’s available.
Dr. McCormick said if a blood test and a stool test are negative, those would probably be repeated every three years. Negative colonoscopies only need to be done every 10 years.
Pittsburg, PA
Tech community to Shapiro and Pennsylvania legislators: Wait on data center rules
Pittsburg, PA
Pittsburgh horror film history honored with new award
Pittsburgh voted best Fourth of July celebration in America
In 2026, Pittsburgh gets the bragging rights for the nation’s Best Fourth of July Celebration, as determined by voters in USA Today 10BEST Readers’ Choice Awards.
Pittsburgh has long been known for its connections to horror films starting with George A. Romero’s Night of the Living Dead in 1968.
Now, in honor of that designation and the legacy of Romero, who died in 2016, the Pittsburgh Film Festival has announced it is introducing a new award this year.
The inaugural Romero Awardfor Best Horror Feature will be presented at the 45th annual Three Rivers Film Festival, scheduled to run from Nov. 4-15, according to the group’s website. Presented with support from the George A. Romero Foundation, the award will be selected by a panel of industry judges.
Named in honor of Romero, the award celebrates bold, visionary work in the horror genre. As the birthplace of Night of the Living Dead, Pittsburgh remains a vital home for horror storytelling, making the Romero Award a natural addition to the festival’s juried honors, the group said.
“The GARF is devoted to preserving Romero’s legacy and continues to support creatives and independent filmmaking in genres and horror spaces,” Suzanne Romero, George’s widow and founder and president of the George A. Romero Foundation, said recently. She died June 24 at her home in Toronto after a long illness.
Film Pittsburgh’s executive director, Shanna Carrick, added, “We are proud to partner with the GARF to introduce an international competition for best independent horror film. Pittsburgh has a deep love of horror films and we believe that our audiences will be thrilled to experience new voices in the genre.”
The festival is currently accepting submissions, with the full lineup to be announced in October.
The festival will also continue to celebrate its horror offerings with its beloved Chiller Theater, named in honor of the late Pittsburgh horror show host Chilly Billy Cardille. The spooky showcase features the best new independent horror shorts from around the globe and Allegheny County.
Pittsburg, PA
Cincinnati Reds vs. Pittsburgh Pirates Game Delayed on Sunday
The Cincinnati Reds are in a rain delay for the second consecutive day. Saturday’s rain delay came before the game even started. Sunday’s rain delay occurred in the bottom of the 8th inning.
“The tarp is on the field, and we are in a delay here at PNC,” the Pirates official account posted on X. “We’ll update when we have info.”
Update: The grounds crew is taking the tarp off the field and the game is expected to resume around 5:20 ET.
The Pittsburgh Pirates lead the Reds 5-4 in the 8th.
Let’s take a look at how we got there.
Game Recap
In the second inning, Esmerlyn Valdez hit a ground-rule double off Reds starting pitcher Brady Singer that scored Nick Gonzalez, giving the Pirates an early 1-0 lead.
Later in the inning, former Red Tyler Callihan hit his third home run of the year, giving Pittsburgh a 4-0 lead.
However, in the fourth, the Reds would battle back. After Elly De La Cruz reached on an error and Sal Stewart singled, JJ Bleday added a single of his own that would score both, making it a 4-2 Pittsburgh advantage.
The Reds continued to rally in the fifth. After Noelvi Marte walked, Tyler Stephenson stayed hot with an RBI double to left field, getting the Reds back within a run.
Edwin Arroyo followed with an RBI single of his own that tied the game at 4.
The Pirates got a run back in the bottom half of the fifth when Ryan O’Hearn hit his 12th home run of the season. That would be it for Singer, who gave up five runs on nine hits in 4 1/3 innings. He struck out six and did not walk a batter.
The Pirates had a big opportunity to break the game wide open in the seventh when Zach McCambley walked the bases loaded. Reds manager Terry Francona brought in Brock Burke, who was miraculously able to get out of the jam with a pop-up and an inning-ending double play.
The Reds had a big chance to tie the game in the 8th when they had runners on first and second with nobody out. However, Nathaniel Lowe popped out, Spencer Steer flew out, and Noelvi Marte grounded out to end the threat.
Pierce Johnson was set to come in the game for the Reds when the game entered a rain delay.
We will provide an update as we know more.
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