New Device Uses Gold Nanoparticles to Test for Lung Cancer

A new device pioneered at the University of Colorado Cancer Center and Technion University in Haifa, Israel uses gold nanoparticles to trap and define the molecules that make up cancer patients' exhaled breath. The device, by comparing the molecular properties to those of control groups, can tell if a lung is cancerous and if the cancer is small-cell or non-small-cell, and adenocarcinoma or squamous cell carcinoma. Researchers say that the device could completely revolutionize lung cancer screening and diagnosis. It allows for non-traumatic, easy, and cheaper early detection and differentiation of lung cancer. The device allows for a personalized approach to define patients' lung cancer subtypes, which allows doctors to pair therapies with subtypes early in the treatment process.

Link to the article: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111117112829.htm