In the second study, Mihir K. Patel, M.D., from the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Fla., and colleagues tested a 4D-ELF technology optic probe during endoscopy on 10 patients with pancreatic cancer and nine patients without pancreatic lesions. The probe was designed to measure changes in deoxyhemoglobin concentration (DHB) and blood vessel radius (BVR) in the small intestine produced by a growing cancer in the neighboring pancreas. The researchers found that the readings at the ampullary region had the maximum ability to differentiate cancer from control. Using both DHB and BVR, the probe could detect pancreatic cancer with a sensitivity of 100 percent and a specificity of 63 percent.
Tags: Cancer, Doctors Lounge, Dr. Mihir K. Patel, Mayo Clinic Jacksonville, pancreatic cancer, Research, Technology