Cervical Cancer detector may improve on Pap Smears

CHERRY HILL, N.J., June 28 /PRNewswire/ -- Physicians may soon give their patients immediate and accurate results during a routine pap smear exam designed to screen for any abnormalities in the cervix.

A medical device in development may be able to identify molecular change in the cervix and optically assess if the cervix is normal, malignant, dysplastic (pre-cancer) or benign.

Mediscience Technology Corp. in collaboration with Dr. Robert Alfano and his team at the City College of New York (CUNY) have developed the Cancer Detection Ratiometer (CD-R), which is expected to enter clinical trials (http://www.medisciencetech.com/).

"Rapid results are important because, although cervical cancer develops slowly, the earlier cancerous or pre-cancerous cervical conditions are detected, the greater the likelihood for a cure, " says Dr. Stephane Lubicz, a gynecological oncologist based in New York. "Many things can interfere with accurate pap test results; among them not enough cells on the slide or improperly preparing the smear."

The CD-R can optically assess cervical tissue using auto-florescent lighting at pre-established wavelengths to diagnose the state of the cervix without removing it from the body. The technology immediately reports to the physician any abnormal cell activity on the CRT screen. This process may eventually eliminate the long waiting for pap smear results.

"The CD-Ratiometer has shown sensitivity and specificity equal or greater than ninety percent in vitro studies. The technology will not give false results, and so far has no-known serious side effects," says Dr. Lubicz.

The American Cancer Society (ACS) estimates that 10,500 cases of invasive cervical cancer will be diagnosed in the United States in 2005, and 3,900 women will die from the disease. The five-year survival rate for invasive cervical cancer that is caught at its earliest stage is nearly 100 percent.

Cervical cancer rates are higher among older women. Half of women diagnosed with cervical cancer are between the ages of 35 and 55.