NEW research from The University of Central Lancashire promises to cut brain cancer diagnosis times from two to three days to just 30 minutes.
The research, developed by Dr Matthew Baker and Mr Peter Abel, is based on using a non-invasive technique to diagnose brain cancer by analysing patients’ blood samples using a combination of infrared lighting and protein biomarkers.
Published today on the front cover of the November edition of Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry, the revolutionary technique is currently undergoing a patent application.
This method would transform the diagnosis of patients with brain tumours who currently have to wait two to three days in hospital while invasive and uncomfortable tests are carried out on them before they get their results.
More than 16,000 people globally each year are diagnosed with a brain tumour. In the UK, more children and adults under 40 die of a brain tumour than from any other cancer – but despite this, brain tumours receive less than one per cent of the national spend on cancer research.
The research, the result of collaboration between UCLan’s School of Forensic and Investigative Sciences and its School of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, is based on an initial analysis of blood samples donated by 49 cancer patients and 25 non- cancer patients.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here