Has an international research team They developed a method for detecting cancerous tumors earlier than current methods. The method involves passing through seemingly healthy tissues and looking for the genetic code of the tumors.
This technique is called spatial transcription And it presents obvious advantages over the current method, which involves the study of tissues under a microscope, the so-called histology. Spatial transcription provides more comprehensive information than histology.
Histology is like standing under a lamppost and looking at the tissue, focusing only on the tumor and not the parts of the surrounding tissue and the conditions, says Joachim Lundberg, professor of molecular biology at KTH and one of the researchers behind the study, in a press release.
The researchers were surprised by the fact that cancer can be detected in cells that appear perfectly healthy when examined under a microscope.
The discovery is a big surprise. It cannot be done in a normal routine examination under a microscope. We can see things outside of tumors, and what’s very exciting is that we’re gaining an understanding of the evolution from healthy tissue to the genesis of tumors. It is actually possible that we can now identify the first events in the development of cancer. Then imagine we can identify new biomarkers that can be used in screening even before tumors form, says Joachim Lundberg.
One of the disadvantages of this method is that it is more expensive than histology. However, the researchers behind the new method hope that the cost will come down as more and more people use the method, which will reduce the cost of the equipment. Because the advantages of the method are obvious, the researchers say.
Research advances have a major impact on the ability to make a diagnosis, and possibly also to decide which parts of the cancer need treatment, says Alistair Lamb, a researcher at the University of Oxford and one of the other researchers behind the study.
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