Device designed to detect signs of lung cancer
/ Courtesy: NBC News
A new sensor that detects cancer could make it a breeze to get tested.
Could your breath one day really help doctors determine if you have cancer? Believe it or not, it could be a reality.
Metabolomx has developed a device which can detect signs of lung cancer. Doctors at the Cleveland Clinic just completed clinical trials on the test. "We found that we can be in the 80 to 85 percent accuracy range at detecting lung cancer from the breath signature, that we were a little more accurate if we looked for a specific type of lung cancer rather than lung cancer in general," said Dr. Peter Mazone, of the Cleveland Clinic.
The five-minute breath test is fast, safe and affordable, costing only $75. The test works by detecting specific biomarkers produced by the cancerous tumor. "It's a signature of the metabolic by products of growing cancer that is detectable in breath," said Dr. Paul Rhodes, CEO of Metabolomx.
In clinical trials, the test has been able to detect lung cancer in its early stages. Lung cancer, the leading cause of cancer death worldwide, is often not diagnosed until late stages when it's much more difficult to treat. Existing tests for lung cancer include CT scans which expose patients to radiation and may lead to unnecessary biopsies.
If this breath test receives FDA approval, the hope is that it could initially be used with a CT scan to determine if a patient really needs a biopsy, potentially offering a sigh of relief to thousands of patients.
Metabolomx is now working on developing other tests using the same technology that may one day help detect colon cancer and tuberculosis.
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Information courtesy of NBC News.
