'Wonderbra' cancer hope

Amanda Crook 28/ 9/2007

SCIENTISTS in Greater Manchester are developing a `wonderbra' which could detect the first signs of breast cancer.Researchers say a microwave antennae system woven into the fabric of the bra detects slight temperature changes in the breast - caused by early cancer cells - catching tumours before they develop and spread.

The bra will be able to detect whether breast cancer treatments are effective, again by detecting tiny changes in the breast tissue, according to the inventors.Prof Elias Siores, an expert in microwave technology, from Bolton University's Centre for Research and Innovation, hopes the bra will be available within two years.

He said: "Early detection of breast cancer gives women the best chances of successful treatment."Doctors have known for many years the temperature of breast cancers and pre-cancerous tissue are slightly higher than normal breast tissue but this is a totally new, out of the box, way of checking for that using high sensitivity microwave antennae. "We are adapting existing technology to measure the temperature inside the breast to get regular reading each day to build up a picture of what is normal for each person and then we will be able to detect a trend of increased temperatures, which may be a warning sign of cancer."

Prof Siores says it takes about 10 minutes for the sensors to take the readings they need and transmit them to a control unit which will sound an alarm when it detects excess temperatures. He says there are no health risks from close contact with the microwaves used in the bra, which is expected to retail at around the same cost as a traditional bra.

More than 44,000 people are diagnosed with breast cancer each year in the UK and 80 per cent of all cases occur in over-50s. He is working with health experts in Greece and production companies in Russia and Hong Kong to develop the bra.

Contributed by William Colburn from Phoenix
(http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk)