Comments on: I’ve heard dogs can detect cancer just from sniffing someone’s breath. How is that possible? http://www.scienceline.org/2007/01/17/ask-westly-cancerdogs/ The Shortest Distance Between You and Science Fri, 20 Nov 2009 14:16:34 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: Aimee http://www.scienceline.org/2007/01/17/ask-westly-cancerdogs/comment-page-1/#comment-2488 Aimee Tue, 02 Dec 2008 02:25:13 +0000 http://scienceline.org/2007/01/17/ask-westly-cancerdogs/#comment-2488 There are two studies that confirm dogs can smell cancer! One trained dogs to smell breath samples abd detect lung and breast cancer, the other trained dogs to smell urine samples and detect bladder cancer. The lung/breast cancer study was very succesful, the dogs were able to detect lung cancer 99% accurately and breast 88%!! There are two studies that confirm dogs can smell cancer! One trained dogs to smell breath samples abd detect lung and breast cancer, the other trained dogs to smell urine samples and detect bladder cancer. The lung/breast cancer study was very succesful, the dogs were able to detect lung cancer 99% accurately and breast 88%!!

]]> By: Jemima Harrison http://www.scienceline.org/2007/01/17/ask-westly-cancerdogs/comment-page-1/#comment-626 Jemima Harrison Wed, 17 Jan 2007 07:40:28 +0000 http://scienceline.org/2007/01/17/ask-westly-cancerdogs/#comment-626 This article is poorly researched and written up for something purporting to be science reporting. There is no scientific study I know of that has measured the bloodhound's olfactory ability. The best most recent study in canine olfaction, from FSU, found pet dogs able to detect a particular chemical, n-amyl acetate, at dilutions of between 1 and 2 parts per trillion. Very impressive - but that's between 10,000 and 100,000 better than humans - not "10 millions times better". Studies, although promising, have not shown that dogs are better than conventional diagnostic techniques. In the preliminary study you refer to published in Integrative Cancer Therapies, the cancer patients taking part in the trial had already been diagnosed, making it difficult to compare statistically with the success rates of conventional techniques where of course the patients don't know they have cancer beforehand. It is possible, for instance, that knowing you have cancer alters the chemicals in your breath in a way that a dog could detect. Much more work needs to be done before you can state categorically that dogs can, indeed, smell cancer. The lung cancer detected by the electronic nose used in Rome was at a very advanced stage. The chemicals it detected are not detectable by an e-nose in early-stage cancer where of course it would be most useful. So to sum up,there is nothing truly conclusive yet to say dogs can smell cancer - but it is undoubtedly an area worthy of further research. Jemima Harrison Producer/director "Can Dogs Smell Cancer?" (BBC/Passionate Productions 2006) This article is poorly researched and written up for something purporting to be science reporting.

There is no scientific study I know of that has measured the bloodhound’s olfactory ability. The best most recent study in canine olfaction, from FSU, found pet dogs able to detect a particular chemical, n-amyl acetate, at dilutions of between 1 and 2 parts per trillion. Very impressive – but that’s between 10,000 and 100,000 better than humans – not “10 millions times better”.

Studies, although promising, have not shown that dogs are better than conventional diagnostic techniques. In the preliminary study you refer to published in Integrative Cancer Therapies, the cancer patients taking part in the trial had already been diagnosed, making it difficult to compare statistically with the success rates of conventional techniques where of course the patients don’t know they have cancer beforehand. It is possible, for instance, that knowing you have cancer alters the chemicals in your breath in a way that a dog could detect. Much more work needs to be done before you can state categorically that dogs can, indeed, smell cancer.

The lung cancer detected by the electronic nose used in Rome was at a very advanced stage. The chemicals it detected are not detectable by an e-nose in early-stage cancer where of course it would be most useful.

So to sum up,there is nothing truly conclusive yet to say dogs can smell cancer – but it is undoubtedly an area worthy of further research.

Jemima Harrison
Producer/director
“Can Dogs Smell Cancer?” (BBC/Passionate Productions 2006)

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