Wonder Dogs:Dogs Sniffers’ Able to Detect Lung Cancer

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By Rachel Derry
Staff Writer LIFamilies

So Fido can play fetch and even rollover, but what if man’s best friend can do so much more? There is a new study that was conducted in Germany that suggests that dog’s sniffers may be able to detect the early stages of lung cancer.

Trained sniffer dogs are supposed to be able to detect certain chemical compounds created by lung cancer by simply sniffing a person’s breath. This could be a huge advance in the early detection of lung cancer, especially since there are usually no symptoms and the current methods of detecting the cancer are unreliable.

The participants of the study were either healthy, had COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), or lung cancer. When the dogs were brought into the study, they were able to identify 71 of 100 samples that had cancer and 372 cancer-free samples of 400.

The trained sniffers are able to break down the different scents in a person’s breath to identify what they are looking for. They can identify lung cancer, COPD, tobacco smoke, and drugs. It is unknown what chemical compound lung cancer creates that a dog can smell, otherwise the finds could be used by scientists to identify.

Until they can be found, man’s best friend continues to one-up his human counterpart. You’re not likely to see a lab in a lab coat anytime soon in your doctors office, but the findings do bring us a step closer to early detection. Hey, I am more than willing to breathe in the face of a pooch if it means extending my life, or the lives of my loved ones.

Long Island Health, Fitness & Beauty Articles > Wonder Dogs:Dogs Sniffers’ Able to Detect Lung Cancer