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Article: Skin cancer has a specific 'smell' - so how do we sniff it out?
- Article from:
- The Scotsman
- Article date:
- August 21, 2008
- Author:
CopyrightCopyright 2008 The Scotsman. Provided by ProQuest LLC. (Hide copyright information)
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SKIN cancer has a specific smell and could one day be detected
using an "electronic nose", researchers said yesterday.
Previous studies have suggested that cancerous tumours could have
different odours, and there have been claims that dogs can sniff out
the disease.
Now chemists have discovered what they call the scent of basal
cell carcinoma - the most common form of skin cancer. They hope it
will lead to quicker ways of diagnosing the disease, using a hand-
held scanner or sensor waved over the skin.
But experts said much more work was needed before a reliable test
based on cancerous odours could be used.