The Joyce sisters, ready for a double date
Well, if you are obsessed, like me, this might be
interesting. If you’re not, just
read my summary and get on with your life.
There is a guy named Sanjiv Gambhir, known universally as “Sam”,
who runs a very productive radiology project at Stanford. The people at Fred Hutch were always
referring to him in hushed tones of respect.
Well, it appears that Sam and his people have developed a valuable
diagnostic tool, in the form of tiny “microbubbles” – one to four microns in
diameter, filled with harmless stuff – that will attach themselves to ovarian
and breast tumors but not to healthy tissue.
Concentrations of these little bubbles can be detected by ultrasound. This allows harmless lesions to be
distinguished from harmful cancer cells – without surgery. This helps minimize anxiety, discomfort – and
money. Good work, Sam.
There are so many angles scientists are working on to either diagnose or treat cancers. This one sounds so promising. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteNot strictly about ovarian cancer, but important. OVCA and BRCA are very similar at the genetic level. If you are diagnosed with BRCA, make sure your oncologist is up to speed.
ReplyDeletehttps://directorsblog.nih.gov/2018/06/12/most-women-with-early-stage-breast-cancer-dont-need-chemo/
More on same subject:
Deletehttps://www.nih.gov/news-events/nih-research-matters/test-predicts-whether-chemotherapy-will-help-early-stage-breast-cancer-patients