New technique to see if cancer treatment works

A cutting-edge technique that boosts the sensitivity of magnetic resonance imaging more than 10,000-fold could allow cancer patients to find out within days of starting treatment how their tumors are likely to respond, a Cancer Research UK study published in Nature Medicine has revealed.

Establishing early on whether a drug is having the desired effect on a patient's cancer - and if necessary changing to an alternative - can have considerable implications for survival. But patients' response to treatment is largely assessed by monitoring the size of their tumors over time. And even if a drug is working, it can take weeks before the tumour stops growing or begins to shrink.

Now scientists in Cambridge, UK, using a super-sensitive scanning technique, developed by GE Healthcare, have captured images of a treatment given to mice with lymphoma taking effect shortly after being administered. The significantly enhanced MRI scans allowed the researchers to observe tumor cells being killed off, confirming that the drug was working. It is hoped further research will prove the technique is also effective in cancer patients.