A team of scientists and engineers from the University of Texas at Austin (USA) has invented a powerful tool that quickly and accurately identifies cancerous tissue during surgery, achieving results in approximately 10 seconds, more than 150 times longer. faster than current technology.
The device, dubbed the MasSpec, represents an innovative pen-like handheld instrument that provides surgeons with precise diagnostic information on which tissue to cut or preserve, helping to improve treatment and reduce the chances of cancer recurrence.
“Our technology could greatly improve the chances that surgeons will remove any trace of cancer during surgery,” explains Livia Schiavinato Eberlin, co-author of the work.
The current method of diagnosing cancers and determining the boundary between cancer and normal tissue during surgery is slow and sometimes inaccurate. Analysis of each sample can take up to 30 minutes, increasing the risk to the patient of infection and the negative effects of anesthesia.
MasSpec Pen – fast and accurate
In tests on tissues removed from 253 cancer patients, the MasSpec pen took about 10 seconds to provide a diagnosis with 96% accuracy, including marginal regions between normal tissues and tissues with mixed cellular composition.
“Every time we can offer the patient a more precise surgery, a faster surgery or a safer surgery, it is something we want to do. This technology does all three things, as it allows us to be much more precise about which tissue we remove and that we left behind “, clarifies James Suliburk, co-author of the study.
Removing too much healthy tissue can also have profound negative consequences for patients , such as an increased risk of painful side effects and nerve damage, in addition to cosmetic impacts (as in the case of breast cancer).
How does it work
Living cells, whether healthy or cancerous, produce small molecules called metabolites. These molecules are involved in many important processes such as energy generation, growth and reproduction, as well as other useful functions such as the elimination of toxins. Each type of cancer produces a unique set of metabolites and other biomarkers that act as fingerprints.
“Because the metabolites in cancer and normal cells are so different, we extract and analyze them with the MasSpec pen to obtain a molecular fingerprint of the tissue,” explains Eberlin.
The molecular fingerprint obtained by MasSpec is instantly evaluated by software , called a statistical classifier, trained on a database of molecular fingerprints that include normal and cancerous tissues of the breast, lung, thyroid and ovary.
When the MasSpec pen completes the analysis, the computer displays the words “Normal” or “Cancer.” As simple as that. Experts believe that for certain types of cancer the name of the subtype may also appear.
The effectiveness of the device is indisputable. In tests carried out with human samples, the certainty of the device was more than 96% for the diagnosis of cancer and without causing any observable damage to tissues or stress level (in experiments with rodents).
The team hopes to already use this new technology during cancer surgeries in 2018.
Referencia: J. Zhang el al., “Nondestructive tissue analysis for ex vivo and in vivo cancer diagnosis using a handheld mass spectrometry system,” Science Translational Medicine (2017). DOI: 10.1126/scitranslmed.aan3968
