# 'Fossil record' in stored blood samples lets scientists trace leukemia back decades before diagnosis

Source: [Medical Xpress - latest medical and health news stories](https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-11-fossil-blood-samples-scientists-leukemia.html) · 2026-11-11 · Medicine
Page: https://themorning.science/story/fossil-record-in-stored-blood-samples-lets-scientists-trace-leukemia-back-decade-6341e56b8923f7ff
Kind: research · Impact: medium

## In brief

- Scientists reconstructed how acute myeloid leukemia (AML) develops over the decades before diagnosis using stored blood samples.
- In two-thirds of cases, the first cancer-driving mutation was acquired before age 20.
- That first mutation was acquired more than 50 years before diagnosis, according to the report.

## Why it matters

The findings show that AML can have a very long pre-diagnostic history, which may matter for understanding when cancer-driving mutations arise and where early intervention might be possible.

## Timeline

- 2026-11-11: Medical Xpress reported the study on reconstructing AML development from stored blood samples

## Coverage

- ['Fossil record' in stored blood samples lets scientists trace leukemia back decades before diagnosis](https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-11-fossil-blood-samples-scientists-leukemia.html) — Medical Xpress - latest medical and health news stories, 2026-11-11

Tags: leukemia, acute myeloid leukemia, cancer evolution, blood samples, mutations

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Brief generated by AI (claude-haiku-5-5) from the reporting listed under Coverage. Headlines belong to their publishers. The Morning Science – https://themorning.science