Cancer is one of the deadliest diseases in the world without any permanent cure for it. But medical experts believe that if it is diagnosed at an early stage, the patient can get rid of it. Therefore the detection of cancer is extremely important as it may result in saving the life of an individual. There have been numerous research centers around the world which are working to find a cure for cancer. But there has not been any major breakthrough yet. The Washington State University has created a device which can enhance the process of cancer detection. The smartphone spectrometer is as good as a portable laboratory and has a high efficiency in detecting cancer cells.
With the invention of the smartphone spectrometer, experts believe that it is a major step towards a convenient and fast delivery of medical tests. It is a low-cost and portable laboratory which delivers results as efficient as any professional laboratory. The producers of the device claim that this spectrometer is different in comparison to the rest of the smartphone laboratories already available in the market.
Something about this smartphone spectrometer
This detection device is developed by a research team of the Washington State University which is led by its assistant professor, Lei Li. The spectrometer can detect human interleukin-6 (IL-6). This is a biomarker in close association with prostate, liver, lung, breast, and epithelial cancers. The working of this gadget takes place by analyzing how many and the type of chemicals present in any given specimen. This analysis is completed by measuring the light spectrum.
The efficiency of the spectrometer is better than the ones already present in the market because it can test more than one sample simultaneously. The device is capable of testing up to eight different samples at the same time or one sample in eight different ways. On the other hand, the rest of the spectrometers are only capable of testing one sample at a given time.
Smartphone Spectrometer To Detect Cancer
How beneficial is this device
The smartphone spectrometer is capable of delivering results as good as any efficient laboratory but at a lower cost. This will increase the number of cases it can deal with at a given period of time. Also, this device is known as a portable laboratory for a particular reason. It will prove to be beneficial in hospitals and clinics which do not have the facility of a well-established clinic. Also, doctors practicing in remote areas can’t carry a laboratory with them but the spectrometer can substitute the same.
Presently, testing of the smartphone spectrometer is limited to standard lab-controlled samples. But officials claim that the device has achieved 99 percent accuracy in its results. At the moment, the spectrometer is in sync with the iPhone 5. The research team is trying to make a version which is compatible with all smartphones. If this device proves to be as efficient as it claims, it may be a major milestone in the detection of the cancer disease.
