colonoscopy
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Yogurt bacteria could replace colonoscopies for cancer detection
Let's face it: colonoscopies are pretty unpleasant. But what if you could eat a spoonful of yogurt to check for cancer rather than enduring that procedure? MIT professor Sangeeta Bhatia is working on engineered bacteria that detects colorectal cancer. After the nanoparticles pass through the digestive system, a urine sample shows results on a reactive paper -- similar to that of a pregnancy test. In addition to being much less invasive, the high-powered yogurt method doesn't require a lab full of equipment, making it an attractive alternative for poor locales. Here's to hoping scientists figure out a better way to get through a root canal next. [Photo credit: Deb Lindsey for The Washington Post via Getty Images]
FDA approves swallowable 'PillCam' after almost a decade (video)
It's been about nine years since we last heard from from Given Imaging, but the FDA has finally granted a version of the firm's minuscule snapshooter its blessing. Not everyone has an easy time undergoing traditional colonoscopy procedures (due to drug allergies, for example), which is where the outfit's PillCam Colon comes in. The camera takes a series of high-speed photos along its eight-hour tour through your digestive system, and transmits the snapshots to a device you mount on your belt. There is a caveat though, as the images aren't up to par with those taken with standard techniques. The PillCam has been available in 80 other countries for some time, but its US-approval could give the some 750,000 people who can't undergo normal cancer-and-polyp-scanning procedures a chance at early detection.