Cancer cells illuminated in tracking breakthrough
There is a fluorescent compound attached to live cancer cells that enables scientists to determine either the growth or containment of the disease.
A team of scientists from Japan and the United States monitored during this study the spread of breast and ovarian cancer cells in living mice. For this procedure they used a small camera known as an endoscope.
The japanese team continued to use Roche AG's Zenapax (another cancer drug) and an endoscope to obtain images of ovarian cancer tumours that had spread inside the abdominal cavities of the living mice.
According to the study, which was reported in the British journal Nature Medicine after half an hour after the cancer cells were killed, the substance stopped glowing.
Dr Yobayashi said: "Our design concept is very versatile and can be used to detect many types of cancer.
This is very great news in research for cancer cure.
via telegraph.co.uk