The Cleveland Clinic for the past 16 years has predicted what the top 10 medical disruptors will be for the following year. The health provider seeks input from 150 to 200 of its physicians, hailing from each of its institutes. The result is 300 to 400 suggestions, which the clinic then narrows down to 150. […]
Power morcellation: Questions linger for controversial tech
Dr. Amy Reed’s tragic case brought to light the cancer risks posed by power morcellation. Her death hasn’t stopped lingering questions about the technology. Power morcellators were used for 20 years to laparoscopically remove fibroids, benign tumors of the uterus, raising not a single adverse event report with the FDA. That all changed in 2013, […]
17 black innovators who made medtech better
From cardiology to endoscopy to blood transfusion, African Americans have played an important role as innovators in the history of medicine and medtech. To help mark African American History Month, here’s a look at some of their greatest achievements. Here are 17 black innovators who have made discoveries and invented devices to make medtech better. […]
The top 10 medical disruptors of 2018
Each year the Cleveland Clinic determines what the top 10 disruptors in healthcare will be for the following year. The criteria to be considered a disruptor or innovation is that it has to be innovative and could change care in a significant way in the next year. Approximately 150 to 200 Cleveland Clinic physicians from […]
Could dogs be better than medical devices at detecting cancer?
Dogs in a small Japan town are being trained to detect stomach cancer through their scent to try to combat the high rates of stomach cancer in the area, according to media reports. The small 6,000-resident Japanese town of Kaneyama has high rates of stomach cancer and mayor Hiroshi Suzuki has taken to a sniffer […]
This microhole chip identifies and sorts cancer cells
Fraunhofer researchers have created a microhole chip that can identify and characterize cancer cells within minutes – helping to catch metastasis before it can begin. Traditional fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS) gives an estimate of the number of tumor cells in a patient’s bloodstream. If there is a higher concentration of tumor cells, there is a […]
This test can detect tiny ovarian tumors sooner than current tests
Massachusetts Institute of Technology engineers have developed a way to detect ovarian tumors that are smaller than 2 mm in diameter, allowing for detection 5 months earlier than existing tests. A synthetic biomarker, which is a nanoparticle that works with tumor proteins to release fragments into the urine for detection, helps the MIT-developed test create […]
This molecule stops pancreatic cancer cells from spreading
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center scientists have identified molecules that could be the next therapeutic solution for pancreatic cancer. Pancreatic cancer is one of the most lethal forms of cancer. About 53,670 people are expected to be diagnosed with pancreatic cancer this year with 43,090 dying from it, according to the American Cancer Society. The lifetime […]
This LED-based device predicts radiation skin damage
Researchers at UC Irvine’s Beckman Laser Institute are developing imaging to predict the skin damage that breast cancer patients will experience from radiation treatment, The Optical Society reported today. “We use visible and near-infrared light at very low power and project it onto the breast. We are trying to characterize the skin damage during radiation […]
How to make ultrasound zap tumors in a moving organ
Researchers led by the Fraunhofer Institute for Medical Image Computing think they’ve overcome the challenges standing in the way of using ultrasound to kill cancer tumors in organs that move with breathing. Until now, health practitioners have mostly limited ultrasound to treating prostate cancer, bone metastases and uterine myoma, according to the Fraunhofer Institute (Bremen, Germany). Organs […]
New blood-based test could detect all lung cancer types
Exact Sciences and the Mayo Clinic recently collaborated on a blood-based lung cancer test that researchers say has shown high accuracy for detecting all stages of lung cancer. “These results reveal an opportunity to detect lung cancer from a simple blood draw,” said Kevin Conroy, chairman and CEO of Exact Sciences, in a news release. “Our […]
