Fingerprints at crime scenes can be highlighted instantaneously.
It’s equally vital to detect cancer early on. Cue an Oregon-based research team aiming to identify pancreatic cancer using 0.008 millilitres of blood.
Key here: special enzymes in the blood (proteases) and illuminating (with a fluorescent agent) their increased activity when the cancer is present.
In a study with 350 participants, the team’s test predicted whether patients already had pancreatic cancer, were at risk of developing it, or belonged to the healthy control group with 98% accuracy.
Together with an antigen test, early stage cancer was detected with 85% accuracy. Analysing the efficacy of treatments is also possible.
Others are striving to reverse colon cancer and defeat skin cancer for good.
