Galleri Test and Functional Wellness: A New Era of Cancer Screening in San Diego
Author: Dr. Kolin Durrant, Integrative Care Director, Doctor of Acupuncture & Chinese Medicine
At Saffron and Sage, holistic health means more than simply preventing disease. It is about understanding the body as a complex, interconnected system where physical, emotional, and energetic health are all deeply interwoven. In this model, prevention is not limited to disease detection. It also includes cultivating vitality and resilience across every layer of the human experience.
With the introduction of the Galleri Test, we are entering a new chapter of preventive care in San Diego. This advanced multi-cancer detection blood test, when combined with our functional wellness offerings, allows members to uncover silent risks and build personalized strategies for long-term health and balance.
Rethinking Cancer Screening
Conventional cancer screenings such as mammograms, colonoscopies, and Pap tests have long been essential tools in detecting disease. However, each test focuses on one organ system and often relies on the presence of visible symptoms or physical changes. As a result, many cancers remain undetected until they have progressed.
The Galleri Test changes that. This multi-cancer early detection tool identifies signals from over fifty types of cancer through a single blood draw. It works by analyzing cell-free DNA for abnormal methylation patterns that may suggest cancer activity. These molecular signals are often present before any symptoms arise, making this test a revolutionary addition to the world of preventive medicine (GRAIL Galleri Test Clinical Validation Study).
For those practicing functional wellness, this test enhances our ability to view the body at a cellular and energetic level, providing deeper insight into both risks and resilience.
Functional Wellness as a Foundation
Functional wellness is not disease-centered. It is rooted in the understanding that optimal health requires physical, emotional, and metabolic balance. This approach prioritizes root-cause healing, personalized testing, and evidence-based lifestyle interventions designed to improve the way the body functions.
By integrating the Galleri Test into our functional care model, Saffron and Sage helps members move beyond reactive healthcare. Our practitioners use these insights to guide supportive therapies, helping members take an empowered, proactive role in their health trajectory.
Together, functional medicine and advanced diagnostics allow for a more complete picture of health. This model blends data with lived experience, measurable results with emotional and physical feedback, and personalized therapy with clinical evidence.
What the Galleri Test Adds
One of the most powerful aspects of functional wellness is the ability to personalize prevention. The Galleri Test supports this by offering a new form of biological feedback: the presence or absence of early cancer signals.
Within our clinic, this information allows practitioners to:
Assess risk for cancers that are not typically included in routine screening
Evaluate patterns of systemic inflammation and premature aging
Customize integrative wellness strategies focused on detoxification, immune strength, and emotional regulation
Build individualized care plans that integrate nutrition, stress reduction, hormone balancing, and mind-body therapies
This is not simply diagnostic data. It is a window into internal shifts that can be addressed well before disease manifests.
Why Early Detection Aligns with Functional Wellness
Functional wellness recognizes that disease is rarely sudden. Imbalances in immunity, metabolism, and hormone function often develop over time, sometimes for years before symptoms appear. Cancer follows a similar trajectory.
According to the National Cancer Institute, certain tumors can take a decade or longer to become detectable through traditional means (National Cancer Institute – Cancer Prevention Overview). Early detection tools such as the Galleri Test help interrupt this progression, giving members time to intervene with holistic support.
Rather than waiting for disease, members can partner with their care team to build resiliency. Through targeted therapies like nutritional optimization, toxin elimination, and nervous system regulation, we help correct imbalances before they give rise to pathology.
The Science Behind the Galleri Test
The Galleri Test has demonstrated a specificity of 99.5 percent and the ability to detect over fifty types of cancer, including difficult-to-detect cancers such as pancreatic, liver, and ovarian. In clinical studies, it identified the tissue of origin in 88 percent of positive cases, helping guide appropriate follow-up diagnostics (GRAIL Galleri Test Clinical Validation Study).
For members, this test provides more than just clinical value. It offers emotional reassurance and peace of mind, knowing the body is being monitored at the cellular level. This supports a greater sense of agency and confidence, both of which are essential to overall health.
According to validation data, the Galleri Test demonstrated a specificity of 99.5% and detected over 50 cancer types, including aggressive and hard-to-detect cancers such as pancreatic, liver, and ovarian (GRAIL Galleri Test Clinical Validation Study).
Integration Within the Saffron & Sage Model
When members undergo the Galleri Test through Saffron & Sage, every phase of the experience is supported by our care team. From initial consultation to interpretation and follow-up, each step is guided with care, context, and compassion.
If no cancer signal is detected, we focus on deepening wellness through optimized detoxification, hormonal balance, and functional nutrition. If a signal is detected, our team coordinates diagnostic imaging and specialist referrals while continuing the emotional and physical support that defines our holistic model.
This ensures that technology becomes a tool within the therapeutic journey, never a replacement for it.
Functional Wellness as a Cancer Prevention Strategy
Cancer prevention, as we define it, reaches beyond screening. It involves optimizing all processes that contribute to long-term vitality, including:
Functional Nutrition: Anti-inflammatory foods and targeted nutrients that support detoxification and repair
Mind-Body Therapies: Yoga, meditation, and breathwork to regulate stress hormones and promote balance
Somatic and Energy Healing: Techniques that release emotional trauma and support nervous system regulation
Biomarker Monitoring: Regular tracking of hormone levels, inflammatory markers, and mitochondrial function
The Galleri Test completes this circle of prevention. It allows us to detect and address risk while continuing to cultivate an internal environment that supports healthy cellular function.
Shifting the Healthcare Landscape in San Diego
Healthcare in San Diego is undergoing a transformation. Patients are demanding more personalized, whole-person care that blends modern science with natural medicine. Saffron & Sage is proud to be at the forefront of this shift.
The integration of the Galleri Test into our functional wellness model illustrates how diagnostics can coexist with intuitive, integrative care. This partnership redefines prevention as both a clinical and spiritual process.
Here, data and intuition meet. Lab results are not feared, but embraced as tools that guide lifestyle, therapy, and healing.
The Practitioner’s Role in Preventive Care
Every practitioner at Saffron & Sage plays an essential role in guiding members through this process. Our team interprets Galleri Test results through a functional lens, considering the entire health picture rather than isolated numbers.
This includes lifestyle coaching, therapy recommendations, and long-term support that meets each member where they are. The result is care that feels empowering, not overwhelming.
Through this relationship-based approach, the Galleri Test becomes not just a diagnostic, but a dialogue — a way to spark meaningful change and inspire ownership of one’s health journey.
Responsible Use and Realistic Expectations
While the Galleri Test is a powerful tool, it is not a diagnostic replacement for standard screenings. Members are always advised to continue age-appropriate preventive exams such as mammograms, colonoscopies, and Pap tests.
This test is best viewed as an addition to a comprehensive prevention plan. When paired with holistic therapies, emotional support, and functional medicine, the Galleri Test becomes part of a larger wellness strategy rooted in informed decision-making and compassionate care.
A Smarter, More Empowered Path to Prevention
The integration of the Galleri Test into Saffron & Sage’s functional wellness framework represents a milestone in preventive healthcare. It allows members to detect signals earlier, act with clarity, and engage with their health in a deeply meaningful way.
Prevention is no longer passive. It is conscious, informed, and anchored in human connection.
This is what it means to live in alignment with true wellbeing: to take ownership, to seek knowledge, and to care for the body before disease takes hold.
Begin Your Preventive Journey
Ready to explore how the Galleri Test can fit into your holistic prevention plan? The team at Saffron & Sage will walk you through every step — from consultation to integration — ensuring your path to longevity is guided by both science and care.
Contact Saffron & Sage today at 619-933-2340 to schedule your functional wellness consultation or learn more about incorporating the Galleri Test into your personalized care plan.