Researchers at the University of Calgary have developed a way to detect early signs of breast cancer months before the formation of tumours, according to Postmedia News Service.
The software that has been developed uses mathematical algorithms to show changes in the patient’s breast tissue, according to the CBC.
In collaboration with the Alberta Breast Cancer Screening Program, Raj Rangayyan, Shantanu Banik and Leo Desautels developed the system that “flags subtle signs of breast cancer,” according to the University of Calgary website.
By having a detection system that will catch things earlier, more women will be able to survive the disease, Rangayyan told the CBC.
“So if you could incorporate this method in the screening program, it will facilitate the detection of cancer at an earlier stage,” he said.
The detection looks at normal breast in which the ligaments, ducts, blood vessels, and tissues all converge towards the nipple, but when cancer is forming, some of these issues get pushed off in other directions, causing distortions, according to the Vancouver Sun.
The distortions can be extremely difficult to see, as a study from Clinical Radiology, a medical journal, said this type of distortion accounts for 12 to 45 per cent of overlooked breast cancer cases.
Rangayyan told the CBC that while his research has been “promising,” it may be a while before doctors are able to use his software on patients.
