Testing exhaled breath with a sensor can detect lung cancer with moderate accuracy, according to researchers at the Cleveland Clinic report, led by Dr. Peter J. Marrone.The testing device detects patterns of volatile organic compounds in exhaled breath. The study compared the patterns of 49 patients with non-small-cell lung cancer, 73 with other, non-malignant health diseases and 21 control patients.
A predictive pattern was determined that was able to detect over 70 percent of the cancers. However, 28 percent of the non-malignant conditions were incorrectly identified as cancerous using this sensor.
Dr. Marrone adds that further work is needed to, "guide refinement of the sensor array and breath collection system to maximize the diagnostic accuracy of the test."
