A new study reveals that a simple breath test device, Nanoscale Artifiical Nose, can detect lung cancer.
The study was conducted by researchers at the University of Colorado Cancer Center and was presented at the 50th Annual Meeting of the American Society for Clinical Oncology (ASCO). The latest research suggests that analyzing the organic compounds in the breath of a patient can find lung cancer. The breath test device can distinguish between patients suffering with lung cancer from patients suffering with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The device can also describe the stage of the cancer present in a patient.
The study results can "revolutionize" the way lung cancer is screened and diagnosed. Researchers say that the main objective is to develop a non-traumatic, cheap and easy way in which lung cancer can be detected and differentiated at an early stage.
The researchers say that the breath test device will require a patient to blow up a balloon. After the balloon has been blown up it is attached to a very sensitive gold nanoparticle sensor. The sensor then allows doctors to analyze organic compounds in the breath. The researchers claim that a USB device has already been developed that can be plugged to a computer for speedy analysis.
"The metabolism of lung cancer patients is different than the metabolism of healthy people," says Fred R. Hirsch, an investigator with the University of Colorado Cancer Center and professor of medical oncology at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. Hirsch says that the variances in metabolism can help understand differences in healthy breath, lung cancer or COPD.
"You detect many, many nodules in those screenings and unfortunately, around 90 percent of them are benign. So you need to find out how to better distinguish malignant from benign modules. The goal of this tool is to use breath biomarkers to distinguish malignant from benign screen-detected nodules," adds Hirsch.
The researcher points out that the breath test device has potential uses that can go beyond just diagnosis. The device is a result of collaboration between Technion University in Haifa, Israel and the University of Colorado Cancer Center.
The breath test device will also enable doctors to understand how well a patient is responding to a given treatment. The before and after test results using the device will help doctors to make a decision if a specific drug is to be given to the patient or if it should be changed.
Hirsch also says that future generations of the breath test device may also help doctors to understand subtypes of lung cancer.
