Cancer to be detected in 30 minutes
An incidental observation by Shantikumar V Nair and Manzoor Koyakutty of Amrita University’s Kochi-based Centre for Nanomedicine has led to detection of cancer in 30 minutes.
Four years ago they were using lasers to detect food contaminants using Raman spectroscopy. As the contaminants threw up distinct patterns, Nair wondered why not bounce lasers off human tissue to detect cancer cells?
The result is a technology that enables cancer detection in less than 30 minutes without a hospital visit. The team is now working on a hand-held instrument to detect oral cancer. It is expected to be ready in two years.
‘We used the method on samples of oral cancer, normal tissues and pre-cancero us tissues. The first set of positive results came two years ago,’ said Nair.
The department of biotechnology has provided the team Rs 60 lakh to design the gadget, expected to cost around Rs 10 lakh.
The cancer detection technology uses a laser with a nano substrate to detect pre-cancerous and cancerous cells. The use of laser to read the nature of cells is not new, but the signals have been found to be weak and difficult to analyse. The nano substrate (a nano material) placed on the tissue solved the problem.
‘The nano substrate amplifies the signals and helps us analyse the results. For each type of tissue -normal, pre-cancerous and cancerous, there is a distinct Raman spectrum emitted by the laser,’ said Nair, one of the three inventors of the technology .
‘Raman signal helps identify organic molecules in tissues. Since these molecules vary depending on the condition of the cells, signals coming from cancer tissue with those coming from normal tissue will be distinct,’ said Nair.
The equipment will include a Raman nano-sensor to get an amplified signal from the tissue. The signals can be analysed at a central facility, and the result will be available within 30 minutes.
While this is a preliminary test to detect cancer, scientists say gold-standard tests will have to confirm it. Nair, who is also the dean of research at Amrita University, said, the new gadget will enable community level large-scale screening without having to take tissue biopsies.
Nair added, ‘In principle, it can diagnose any cancer from which Raman spectra can be obtained. This includes skin cancer, or internal cancers if the laser is delivered through optical fibre and the Raman signals are received through the same fibre’.
‘We have paid more attention to oral cancer because of the possibility of screening for these cancers early and also because oral cancer is on the rise and is curable if detected early,’ said Nair.
Looks like soon we would be able to easily detect cancer within 30 minutes without a biopsy!
