Scientists at Drexel are on the cusp of revolutionizing breast cancer detection.
A hand-held device developed at Drexel that can detect cancer by sensing the elasticity of breast tissue is moving into the final stages of testing and development. With help from a Pennsylvania Department of Health grant, physicians could soon have a new noninvasive, radiation-free option when it comes to performing regular breast exams.
The device—“Intelligent Breast Exam,” or iBE—was developed by researchers in Drexel’s College of Medicine and School of Biomedical Engineering, Science and Health Systems. Using piezoelectric finger technology, iBE is able to glean more accurate information from routine breast examinations. The device could become a valuable tool for physicians in the early detection of breast cancer.
In a pilot clinical study conducted at Drexel’s College of Medicine, iBE detected nine out of 11 clinician non-palpable breast tumors and identified one invasive breast cancer that was missed on the mammogram.
“The Intelligent Breast Exam can differentiate between the stiffness of normal breast tissue versus that of a tumor,” says Dr. Ari Brooks, chief of surgical oncology at the College of Medicine. “Within our clinical trials, iBE was even more effective at finding tumors in women under 40.”
UE LifeSciences Inc., a Philadelphia-based startup that licensed the technology in 2010, will use the $878,422 grant from the Pennsylvania DOH’s Commonwealth Universal Research Enhancement (CURE) program to further commercialize and clinically validate the sensor technology. UE LifeSciences will collaborate with various organizations as it develops an energy efficient, smaller footprint beta sensor integrated with smartphone platform for further clinical evaluation. The technology behind the device originated at Drexel’s School of Biomedical Engineering, Science and Health Systems, under the research of associate professor Dr. Wan Shih. Shih was inspired by her own battle with breast cancer.
“I am thrilled to see this technology move a few steps closer to being available in the clinic,” Shih says. “It will benefit millions of women for whom mammography is not effective.”