SYDNEY, Sept 25: A simple breath test could help doctors distinguish between cancerous and non-cancerous lung nodules, supporting earlier lung cancer diagnosis and negating the need for invasive testing, Australian-led research has found.
Researchers analyzed exhaled breath using two complementary technologies: an electronic nose, or eNose, which identifies patterns in breath chemicals, and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, which detects specific volatile organic compounds in breath, according to a statement released Thursday by Australia's Griffith University.
"Both breath-based approaches showed substantially better discrimination between malignant and benign nodules than models using standard clinical information alone," said Chamindie Punyadeera, a professor from Griffith's Institute for Biomedicine and Glycomics, corresponding author of the study published in MedComm.
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Lung nodules are currently assessed through invasive procedures including CT-guided biopsies and bronchoscopy, while some patients may undergo surgery to investigate suspicious nodules, the statement said, noting that about 2.5 million new cases of lung cancer are diagnosed worldwide each year.
Co-author Zhang Xi from Griffith University said biopsying lung nodules could be technically challenging, particularly when lesions were small or difficult to access, and could cause complications such as a collapsed lung.
While the breath test showed promise in identifying nodules most likely to be malignant, it was not intended to replace biopsies, Zhang said, but could help doctors decide which patients needed invasive intervention most urgently.
"It is hoped it could also potentially reduce unnecessary procedures for patients with benign nodules by including the non-invasive test into routine clinical care," Zhang added.
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