SYDNEY, Jan. 31 (Xinhua) -- Scientists in Australia have developed a diagnostic device that can tell how deadly brain tumors respond to treatment from a simple blood test, in what they describe as a "window to the brain."
The new device, called a Phenotype Analyzer Chip, developed in the laboratory of Professor Matt Trau at Australia's University of Queensland (UQ), reads tiny biological particles in a patient's bloodstream to get fast and accurate information on glioblastoma, the most common and deadly brain cancer, said a UQ statement on Saturday.
"What we're doing is getting clear, precise information on the disease as early as possible so we can better inform treatment pathways," Trau said.
The device, validated in more than 40 brain cancer patients, could eliminate the need for invasive biopsies or late-stage MRI scans to gauge treatment progress, according to the study published in Science Advances.
"There has been very little success so far in clinical trials for new and experimental glioblastoma treatments," said Richard Lobb at UQ's Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology.
"That's partly because there is no way to tell if a therapy is working precisely as it should at that moment without drilling into someone's head," said Lobb, the study's co-author.
Researchers said the new chip also had the potential to unlock therapies for neurological disorders such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, motor neurone disease, and depression. ■
