With Just A Single Drop Of Blood, This Machine Can Detect 13 Different Types Of Cancer

On November 25, Toshiba, the popular Japanese enterprise, revealed that it has created a new device capable of detecting 13 different types of cancer with just a drop of blood with an accuracy rate of 99%.

This revolutionary device is the result of a collaboration between Toshiba and the National Cancer Center Research Institute and Tokyo Medical University. This machine is scheduled to be on the market in the next few years after it undergoes its trial which begins next year.

How the machine can detect blood is quite cool. The researchers and scientists behind this machine have designed it to examine microRNA molecules’ type and concentration from cancerous cells.

Koji Hashimoto who is a chief research scientist at the Frontier Research Laboratory of Toshiba said in a statement that when comparing their new method with other companies’ methods in cancer detection, it is better, in terms of accuracy rate,  the time needed for detection as well as the cost.

This new device from Toshiba can detect glioma, sarcoma, and cancers like bladder, breast, prostate, ovarian, biliary tract, bowel, liver, pancreatic, lung, esophageal, and gastric.

Not only the machine can revolutionize cancer detection, making it more accurate, it is also not too costly.

However, this is not the first time for scientists to have found methods in detecting cancer efficiently and swiftly. In 2018, the University of Queensland scientists came up with a universal cancer test that made use of a simple color-changing watery substance to reveal malignant cells’ presence in the body. It took no more than 10 minutes for the test to be completed.

The test is based on a simple fact that cancer DNA and normal DNA adhere to metal surfaces differently. If a patient has cancerous cells in their body, the bloodstream is where these cells travel through. With this test, even tiny traces of malignant cells are checked. This method seems not to be as practical as the machine from Toshiba, it is still a game-changing method nonetheless.