Nobody wants to hear that they have cancer. Often, however, the earliest possible diagnosis is the key to recovery. A new technology invented by scientists, thanks to which cancer can be immediately detected even in the early stages of the disease, consisting in a simple breath test, offers great hope for a breakthrough in improving the detection rates and hence the cure rate of cancer.
NA-NOSE(short for Artificial Nano Nose) designed to mimic a dog's very sensitive sense of smell. The device takes a sample of the patient's breath and immediately shows the result - not only showing the presence of cancer cells, but also the stage of the disease. Initial testing of this method showed extremely promising results. The test is based on detecting microscopic changes in the body that appear as a result of neoplastic changes.
Early cancer detection means a better chance of curing it
By detecting cancer at an early stage of the disease, NA-NOSE offers a unique alerting system that can save thousands of lives, enabling diagnosis and treatment earlier than previously possible. Potentially NA-NOSE may also be able to detect the first symptoms of other serious diseases such as Parkinson's disease, kidney disease, liver disease, Alzheimer's disease and multiple sclerosis - making this test a truly "miracle device". - At first, I thought it was science fiction. This cannot be true - says prof. Abraham Kuten, one of the scientists involved in the NA-NOSE project. However, based on the successful results so far, Professor Kuten says that it may prove to be a very important tool in the early diagnosis of cancer.
ImportantThis potentially groundbreaking project was funded by the European Commission under a € 1.7 million Marie Curie Excellence grant. The purpose of these grants is to enable up-and-coming researchers to conduct advanced research of particular interest to Europe.
The first NA-NOSE tests are promising
When breathing tests were conducted on the first 62 volunteers - including patients with head and neck cancer, patients with lung cancer, andquite he althy people - NA-NOSE has correctly diagnosed all patients with both types of cancer. The correct diagnosis also concerned almost all he althy patients. NA-NOSE's secret lies in a sequence of sub-microscopic (nanoparticle) gold sensors that can detect tiny molecular changes that occur in the blood of sick patients. Their concentration levels are so low that it can be compared to detecting a single flower in a wide meadow of flowers - using only the sense of smell.
By using trace amounts of these molecules, the device can not only detect neoplasm, but can also distinguish types of cancer, such as lung, breast, colon, prostate, head and neck cancer. The scientist who led the research, Professor Hossam Haick of the Israel Institute of Technology (Technion), was inspired to conduct the research after witnessing his friend suffering from leukemia suffer. Of course, further extensive NA-NOSE testing will be needed. But if all is successful, the device will be ready for use in patients with breast and rectal cancer in about three years, and for patients with other types of cancer in about seven years. Medicine could be a real breakthrough with this revolutionary electronic nose that promises reliable, non-invasive and inexpensive early diagnosis. The ability to - literally - 'sniff out' cancer cells and other serious diseases can actually become real.