Cancer diagnosis is more problematic when tumor cells have made metastasis (they have spread) to other organs. This occurs more frequently through lymph nodes and the lymphatic drainage system. The tests to determine if the cancer cells are housed in the lymph nodes are The reference method to detect metastasis and determine treatment.
Tracking cancer is not new, but the traditional methods used in hospitals use radioactive tracers or simple blue dyes. Radioactive tracers are not available in all hospitals due to additional precautions required by manipulating radioactive materials. The blue dye causes an allergic reaction in one in every one hundred people, which is an unwanted complication when the patient is under general anesthesia. So it was until now.
A team of scientists from Warwick University has developed A new diamond -based magnetic field sensor which could be used to better detect tumors by tracking the magnetic fluid injected into the body.
The study, published in Physical Review Applied, explains how the authors have developed a new non -toxic or radioactive device that uses the unique diamond properties to diagnose metastatic breast cancer. This device is ultrasensitive, laptop and works long distancewhich provides an improved solution to a usual challenge facing oncological surgeons.
“There is a great demand for versatile and non -toxic methods to detect cancer -explains Alex Newman, leader of the study, in a statement -for this new diamond sensor, we managed to reduce the size of the head to just 10 mm, which means it is The first diamond sensor capable of detecting magnetic tracer liquid with a size small enough for endoscopic use and in minimally invasive surgery ”.
To this we must add that it is a very sensitive device, capable of detecting a hundredth of the typical complete clinical dose of magnetic tracer liquid.
The diamond sensor works by detecting a magnetic tracer fluid (iron oxide nanoparticles) that is introduced into the patient during or before breast cancer surgery. The tracer fluid is injected into the tumor and then travels to the lymph nodes together with metastatic cancer cells. A magnetic field sensor based on a diamond can locate the tracer fluid and accurately identify the lymph nodes that will be surgically removed to stop the propagation of cancer.
Its compact design is achieved by using a tiny diamond (0.5 mm³) and a small permanent magnet fixed to the probe head. This eliminates the need for bulky electronic devices, which allows a portable and versatile tool.
“Diamonds can detect magnetic fields thanks to their color centers, called nitrogen vacancy -adds Gavin Morley, co -author of the study -. These allow the diamond to detect very small changes in the magnetic field and give it a pink attraction. We hope to use these magnetic field sensors not only for medical applications, but also for spacecraft and merger energy. ”
Detect a magnetic tracer with a small and sensitive sensor like diamond It could be revolutionary.
While the use of magnetic trace fluids is being generalized, this new diamond sensor could provide a smaller and sensitive detector, especially as new quantum techniques are implemented. Applications in other types of cancer, such as lung, liver, colorectal and esophagus, could offer even more benefits to patients.