High-Tech Contact Lenses Could Diagnose Cancer Tumors Through Tears

Cancer is notoriously difficult to diagnose, and worse still, the procedures available are often painful and distressing; which is why researchers have been working to come up with new processes that are less invasive and more comfortable for patients. 

As such, a new study by scientists at the Terasaki Institute for Biomedical Innovation, a nonprofit organization based in California, has revealed that a new form of contact lenses could be used to detect—and maybe even treat—cancer just by analyzing the wearer’s tears. 

Led by biomedical engineer Yangzhi Zhu, the innovation is currently at the proof-of-concept stage, and while it has only been tested on cells in a laboratory setting, the team is positive it could one day become an easier, quicker way for cancer diagnosis. 

According to Inverse, the lenses work by collecting exosomes, which are cellular byproducts in tears that often indicate the presence of tumors elsewhere in the body. By using a special antibody that latches onto the one found on the exosomes, the contact lenses will turn red if they detect the presence of tumor cells. 

To achieve this, the researchers added microchambers, which included cavities to house the antibodies, into the contact lenses via lasers, adding polymers on the surface of the sensors to attract the desired components of a patient’s tears. 

Naturally, this test would save doctors heaps of time in completing diagnosis, seeing as it’s both faster and less costly than a blood test, biopsy, or CT scan. Theoretically, the process will offer results in under 30 minutes, and will be essentially painless. 

Going forward, the scientists aim to look deeper into exosomes and figure out if those secreted by different types of cancer tumors can reach one’s tears, and how the method could be used to further identify specific types of cancerous tumors. 

The team is looking to begin a study that will test the contact lenses on rabbits, which share similar eyes to that of humans, and hopes safety standards can be reached for human trials to begin within the next few years. 

[via Interesting Engineering and Inverse, cover image via Candybox Images | Dreamstime.com]