Mark's Notebook


	Laughing is my favorite form of worship.

Doggie Howser MD

San Jose Mercury News

Thursday 26 January 2006, 2:27 pm
Keywords: News Articles , Health Topics

By Linda Goldston, Mercury News

Researchers in Marin County have been able to train dogs to detect lung and breast cancer in breath samples from people with 88 to 99 percent accuracy, according to a study released last week.

The studies show that cancer cells emit chemicals or molecules that are different from those in normal cells, and more research is needed to determine just what those chemicals are -- and whether they could help doctors find cancers earlier.

Questions to be answered are: "What is it dogs are smelling, and can chemical analysis match the dogs in terms of specificity and sensitivity?" said Michael McCulloch, research director for the private, non-profit Pine Street Foundation in San Anselmo. "Then the pathway will likely lead to an `electronic nose.' "

The study, which will be published in the March issue of the medical journal Integrative Cancer Therapies, is the first to test whether dogs can detect cancer by sniffing samples of exhaled breath collected in tubes.

http://www.mercurynews.com:80/mld/mercurynews/news/13715788.htm

Pine Street Foundation:
http://www.pinestreetfoundation.org/

Cancer-detection studies with dogs at Florida State University:
http://www.psy.fsu.edu/~fsusri/