SNIFFPHONE
March 31, 2015 | Terry Sharrer
Tumors are known to release volatile organic compounds, which is why dogs can be trained to sniff out lung cancer. For some time, engineers have been trying to do the same thing with chemical breathalyzers. This piece describes a device, “NaNose,” developed at the Israel Institute of Technology (Haifa) which is a gold plated chip with nano sensors for airborne compounds released from lung tumors. In a recent version, NaNose has a breathing tube that connects to a smartphone were analysis can be done locally, or the data transmitted to an information processing center. The device has a 90% accuracy—only 8% shy of a dog’s nose. MORE
Image Credit: Technion