Clapper, Patti, Schweizer and Mason

Mesothelioma is currently incurable, however, if diagnosed earlier and given proper treatment the longevity of patients can be extended by years.  The key to proper treatment for mesothelioma is early detection.  That’s why the news out of the Netherlands is so exciting.  A study conducted by researchers from the University of Amsterdam Medical Center has developed a new method for testing which can identify whether or not a patient has mesothelioma just by sampling their breath (Bronchoscopic Air-sampling by Electronic Nose for Molecular Assessment of Lung Cancer van der Schee et al. American Journal of Respiratory Crit. Care Med..2010;181:A6570.) 

The device that they’ve developed sorts through the volatile organic compounds in the patient’s exhalation giving doctors a “breath print” unique to each patient.  Doctors can then compare key components of those compounds against known templates to determine if the patient has cancer or not.  This new machine, called the Cyranose 320 – a play on Cyrano De Bergerac perhaps –has been dubbed an “electronic nose” by the media because of its ability to “sniff out” cancer within a patient.

Mesothelioma is a rare form of cancer which is caused by exposure to asbestos.  Tumors form in the mesothelium (the soft tissue which surrounds the lungs and other vital internal organs) after asbestos fibers imbed themselves in the thin membrane lining.  The disease can go unnoticed for decades, which is precisely why creating an easier, quicker, and cheaper method of detection is essential.

Currently, the most accepted method for diagnosis of mesothelioma involves cutting a piece of tissue from the body and examining them under a microscope.  Though these procedures have been done for years and modern medicine has mitigated some of the dangers, the risks from these thoracic biopsies still include collapsed lungs, uncontrollable or extensive hemorrhaging, or even deadly embolisms. 

The Cyranose 320, if proven accurate enough, will give doctors a non-invasive tool they can use to sort through patients to determine which ones require further testing and which do not.

The results of the study, published in the medical journal Lung Cancer created quite a stir in the cancer community.  Not only would the new breath test allow for a safer alternative to traditional diagnosis methods, the test would likely cost much less, take less time, and could be used sooner in order to get patients on a solid course of treatment.

One of the things giving doctors and scientist pause, however, is that the study was rather limited.  Though the methodology behind the Netherlands study was solid, the test sample group was rather small.  The sample group contained only 39 people:

• 13 who had been previously diagnosed with malignant pleural mesothelioma
• 13 who had been given clean bills of health
• 13 who had been exposed to asbestos – the natural mineral that causes mesothelioma – but who had no overt symptoms of the disease 

In that small sample, Cyranose 320 was 80% accurate in determining which had mesothelioma when compared to those who had been exposed to asbestos but were mesothelioma-free.  When testing the affected group against the one with the clean bills of health, Cyranose was 85% accurate.

The next step is to refine the results and test in a larger sample to see if those accuracy rates can be maintained.  If so, Cyranose 320 may find its way into hospitals and cancer centers around the globe very soon.