Non-invasive

We’ve previously seen bras that monitor a wearer’s heart rate, double as an emergency facemask, or help women search for a husband. But the BSE (breast self exam) bra being developed by First Warning Systems looks to be the best bit of added functionality for the support undergarment we’ve come across yet. Using sensors integrated into the cups, the bra looks for the slight variations in temperature on the surface of the breast that can indicate a tumor growing within.  Read More

The FDA (US Food and Drug Administration) has approved a new treatment for patients as an alternative to chemotherapy. The promising new non-invasive treatment by Novocure uses "Tumor Treating Fields" (NovoTTF) to treat cancerous growths and is now available for adult patients with recurring brain tumors (recurrent glioblastoma or GBM). The treatment delivers electric fields to a patient utilizing a portable, wearable device that permits the patient to maintain normal daily activities without down time.  Read More

Scientists – and dogs – have known for some time that our breath can reveal much more about us than our estimated blood alcohol content. Researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison believe that “breathalyzer”-like technology they currently have under development could be used to diagnose a wide range of diseases, such as diabetes, cancer and infections. Such technology, which relies on the fact that many diseases alter the body’s metabolism in distinctive ways, would provide a non-invasive method of detecting disease even before typical symptoms appear.  Read More

While Star Trek-style multifunctional medical "tricorders" are still in the realm of sci-fi, scientists at the University of Leicester and Leicester Royal Infirmary (LRI) in the UK may be making the first tentative steps toward making them a reality. The researchers are developing a holistic high-tech diagnostic unit designed to quickly detect the "sight, smell and feel" of disease in real time without the need for invasive and time-consuming procedures. Much of the technology being used was originally developed for space research, atmospheric chemistry and emergency medicine.  Read More

Medical device company ZELTIQ has developed a safe procedure to deliver clinically proven results that could potentially say goodbye to “love handles”. Developed at the Wellman Center of Photomedecine at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, Coolsculpting is a method that freezes unwanted fat cells and removes them permanently without invasive surgery. After a series of clinical trials and evidence from ultrasound and histological results, Coolsculpting has recently been approved by the U.S Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and is targeted for those who are not considered to be clinically overweight but may carry pockets of unwanted fat in areas of their body which have not responded to diet or exercise.  Read More

For most sufferers of type 1 diabetes pricking their fingers several times a day to draw blood for testing is an annoying (and often painful), but necessary part of life. It is essential to keep an eye on blood glucose levels because too much sugar can damage organs, while too little deprives the body of necessary fuel. To minimize that pain and inconvenience, researchers at MIT’s Spectroscopy Laboratory are working on a noninvasive way to measure blood glucose levels using light.  Read More