Dogs can do many tricks. Some can catch frisbees, some can walk on their back legs, and some can bring in the paper. However, can dogs really detect cancer?
According to a study conducted in Italy, two dogs were trained and tested to detect cancer. the dogs sniffed urine samples collected from a group of 677 people, some who were cancer-free and some who had prostate cancer. The dogs had a 98% percent success rate of correctly identifying which samples were from those with tumors.
Dogs are known for their scent of smell and have four times the number of cells used to smell than humans. Therefore, it is not too far fetched to think that dogs can sniff the chemicals that tumors emit. The non-profit, the InSitu Foundation, is even seeking approval from the FDA for a “canine medical scent detection kit” that would detect lung cancer through breath samples.
The first step to train these animals is to hold two samples of fluid, one with cancer cells and one without, in front of each dog. The dog is then rewarded when it sniffs the vial with the cancerous fluid inside. This allows the dogs to become familiar with the smell that is linked to cancer.
Dogs have alway been very loyal creatures to their owners. They’ve been used as seeing-eye guides and they can even detect when someone is about to have a seizure. Using their sniffing powers to detect cancer seems only like the next step. I think this would be a great idea especially because dogs keep many calm when they are nervous or anxious, like being tested for cancer.
http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/d-brief/2014/05/19/dogs-sniff-out-prostate-cancer-with-98-percent-accuracy/#.VBeXdec03Ao
http://www.nbcnews.com/health/mens-health/dogs-sniff-out-prostate-cancer-n107641
http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/09/10/training-dogs-to-sniff-out-cancer/?_php=true&_type=blogs&ref=research&_r=0
This is one of the coolest things I’ve ever heard of. Dogs are looked at as a best friend and for many people they consider their dogs part of the family. I think this only further instills the notion that dogs are some of the most helpful, friendly and intelligent animals we live among. There are so many people trying to cure cancer and figure out the answers, why not look to dogs for a little help? I think if this was further looked into it could become a great asset and should be used more.
This article intrigues me because of the high rate of cancer in my family. Anything we can do to get rid of that horrid disease I am on board for. I think this is a good way to identify the disease and if a cure is too far out there, we need to be looking into resources like this so we can early detect and treat cancer. Check out other new innovative ways people are finding that detect cancer easier. http://www.cbsnews.com/news/16-year-old-finds-a-new-way-to-detect-cancer/