Inhale & exhale: detecting cancer may be one breath away

In 10 seconds? Scientists are developing tests to detect cancer from breath samples. This work is still in development but could be a potential non-invasive way to screen for cancer.

What possessed scientists to look for cancer in breath samples? Human breath contains thousands of unique chemicals called ‘volatile organic compounds’ or VOCs. It turns out that the VOCs in our breath change under different disease conditions, including cancer. These findings prompted researchers to investigate if VOCs could be used as a biomarker to detect cancer.