New pill ‘lights up’ breast cancer cells

Scientists from the University of Michigan have developed a pill which binds onto cancer cells or blood vessels which are unique to tumours, by way of an imaging agent.

The pill has proven to be a success in trials with mice, opening up the potential for human trials.

A third of patients who undergo breast cancer treatment had their benign masses mistaken as cancerous due to current scanning techniques.

Professor Greg Thurber, who led the team, said “We overspend $4 billion per year on the diagnosis and treatment of cancers that women would never die from. If we go to molecular imaging, we can see which tumours need to be treated.”

Although mammograms are able to detect small changes in breast tissue which are too small to be felt by a doctor, most women find this procedure uncomfortable and there is a growing debate over it’s effectiveness.

Breast cancer screening has also recently been criticised for possibly causing more harm than good, as they often are unable to distinguish between benign and cancerous growths.

This latest imaging technique can detect tumours one to two centimetres deep and could eliminate the need for the current type of screening.

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Posted by Karen Motley, Paralegal, Clinical Negligence Department, Chadwick Lawrence LLP (karenmotley@chadlaw.co.uk), medical negligence lawyers and clinical negligence solicitors in Huddersfield, Leeds, Wakefield and Halifax, West Yorkshire.

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