Researchers at the University of Texas at Austin developed the MasSpec Pen for Cancer Cell Diagnosis
Orange County, CA - September 8th 2017 - Surgeons when removing cancerous tissue must be sure to remove the tumor in its entirety. Failure to remove all the tissue, even the smallest amount of neoplasm left in the body, results in the disease’s inevitable regrowth. To simplify this process, researchers at the University of Texas at Austin have developed a hand-held surgical “pen” able to analyze tissue samples in seconds.
Currently, the most common solution to test for leftover cancerous tissue is to perform a biopsy and take a piece of issue from around the tumor’s border. This test can take 30 minutes or more, leaving the patient at risk for infection while left on the operating table. To avoid this patients are often removed, and if necessary resubmitted into surgery depending on individual results.
The MasSpc Pen was created to help surgeons distinguish between healthy and cancerous tissue during procedures in a timely manner. In testing the device, the pen was able to analyze and identify problem areas from healthy tissue with 96% accuracy by utilizing mass spectrometry. These metabolites act as hallmarks for different types of cancer.
The surgeon need only point the device at a suspicious piece of tissue and will learn the tissue’s status within 10 seconds. In the assessment, a drop of water from inside the Pen extracts small molecules from the sample extracted in surgery. Once drawn into the mass spectrometer, the system inspects the molecular composition of the water sample for cancer. Within seconds surgeons are directed to the proper tissue lacerating and removing harmful portions, while leaving behind healthy cells.
“Cancer cells have dysregulated metabolism as they’re growing out of control,” says Livia Schiavinato Eberlin, a scientist involved in the research. “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. What is incredible is that through this simple and gentle chemical process, the MasSpec Pen rapidly provides diagnostic molecular information without causing tissue damage.”
Though similar in concept to other devices, researchers at the University of Texas at Austin are enthusiastic about the pursuit to develop this type of technology with other research teams around the world. This communal effort holds promise of producing significantly improved surgical treatments of cancer.
