Exhaled breath is as 'individual as a fingerprint': Groundbreaking discovery could help spot illness and even replace dope tests

for athletes
Unique metabolites in exhaled breath could help doctors to detect illnesses Could also be used in anaesthesia or doping tests for athletes, it is hoped
By Amanda Williams PUBLISHED: 11:42 GMT, 4 April 2013 | UPDATED: 18:58 GMT, 4 April 2013

Compounds found in breath are as 'individual as a fingerprint', a study has found. The unique metabolites found in everyone's exhaled breath could help doctors to detect illnesses such as cancer. A study in PLOS ONE suggests they could be as useful to medical diagnosis as those found in urine or blood. And because a breath test is non-invasive and the results are instantaneous, it could also be used in anaesthesia or doping tests.

Compounds found in breath are as individual as a 'fingerprint', a study has found. The

unique metabolites found in everyone's exhaled breath could help doctors to detect illnesses such as cancer

The study was led by author Renato Zenobi of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) in Zurich. He told the BBC: 'I don't understand why breath hasn't been a widely used means of medical science diagnosis.
'In

traditional Chinese medicine, they feel your pulse, look at your tongue and smell your breath.

'There are trained dogs who can sniff cancer with a fairly good hit-rate - but the dog doesn't tell you what the compounds are.'

A study in PLOS ONE suggests they could be as useful to medical diagnosis as those found in urine or blood. And because a breath test is non-invasive and the results are instantaneous, it could also be used in anaesthesia or doping tests

The team took breath samples from 11 volunteers across four time slots in nine days. They were then run through a mass spectrometer - a device which measures all the masses of the chemical compounds in the breath. Some compounds, such as water vapour and carbon dioxide, were the same in all of the test participants.

THE BREATHALYSER STYLE TEST WHICH DETECTS CANCER

Scientists have developed a breath test that could help diagnose stomach cancers. The test has a 90 per cent success rate at picking up chemical signals for cancer, compared with less serious stomach problems, according to a study. It involves using sensors to detect very small particles of chemicals exhaled on breath, which are exuded from tumours. Findings from a joint study by scientists in Israel and China, involving 130 patients, are published in the British

Journal of Cancer. Professor Hossam Haick, lead researcher from Technion Israel Institute of Technology, said the breath test could be an alternative to an endoscopy the invasive procedure using a long flexible tube passed into the digestive system, which can be costly, time-consuming and unpleasant. Were already building on the success of this study with a larger-scale clinical trial, he added. But those that differed were unique to individuals and stayed the same for those individuals throughout the course of the experiments. In previous studies, one of the subject's breath revealed a mass peak of a compound - different to others in the cohort. It was later revealed to be connected to an epilepsy medication he was taking, and when other patients on the same drug were tested, the same results were found. It is hoped the breath test could be now used in checking the appropriate dose for a patient undergoing an anaesthetic. A safe dose is dependent on a patient's tolerance and metabolic rate. A breath test could show how well a patients metabolises a small dose, in order to work out a safe measure. And in sport, an at-the-starting-line test could be carried out to check for doping. As the tests continue and the stability and uniqueness of each individual's breathprint is further verified, it is hoped it could become a staple of the medical diagnostic world.

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Comments (8)
Newest Oldest Best rated Worst rated View all T Just think of all the different manky breaths you breathe on the tube or bus. - harry, Fife, United Kingdom, 04/04/2013 15:52 Thanks for that... Oh and Fife is a lovely place - went there on holiday the once! I could quite easily move to Scotland tomorrow - Hi , UK, 06/4/2013 22:56 Click to rate Report abuse Not all breath is unique. Politicians have been known to have halitosis, that is a mixture of bull, and and it's excrement! - someone , somewhere, United Kingdom, 05/4/2013 00:07 Click to rate Report abuse This does not surprise me... because we are all unique. - JJherself , Northampton, United Kingdom, 04/4/2013 22:05 Click to rate Report abuse something else we can learn from animals. dogs have been detecting cancers for years. its about time technology caught up - aw , Coventry, 04/4/2013 21:54 Click to rate Report abuse Most drugs of abuse are not excreted by the pulmonary route but are excreted renal or via bile and faces. Technique therefore has limited use - Observer1951 , Uk, United Kingdom, 04/4/2013 20:49 Rating 19 Rating 6 Rating 7 Rating (0)

Click to rate Report abuse

Rating 2

I'm keto adapted & my partner can spot immediately if I slip out of ketosis as my breath loses its "fruity" scent. It is the same for diabetics & many others. - Elizaa , Do, land Islands, 04/4/2013 18:18 Click to rate Report abuse Just think of all the different manky breaths you breathe on the tube or bus. - harry , Fife, United Kingdom, 04/4/2013 16:52 Click to rate Report abuse An old diagnostic trick to detect appendicitis was to smell the patient's breath. A rotten apple odor supposedly heralded an acute appendix ready to blow. - depwavid , Panama City Beach, USA, 04/4/2013 16:33 Click to rate Report abuse The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. Today's headlines Most Read Dazzling pictures of Orion Nebula captured from a back garden in Germany Scientists baffled by see-through 'ice fish' with transparent BLOOD Now chocolate can be one of your five-a-day: Scientists create bars without the fat that are made from fruit juice Workers send and receive 10,000 emails a year - but has it made us any more productive? 'Give me a napkin quick. There's a turd floating through the air': Transcript reveals the toilet trials of the Apollo astronauts Fracking causes as much seismic activity as 'jumping off a ladder': Controversial method for extracting gas is 'extremely unlikely to trigger an earthquake we would feel' Bright lights, traveling through a tunnel and the sensation of leaving your own body: How recollections of near-death experiences are 'more real than real' Feeling cold? Why not try meditating? Scientists prove you can use your brain to increase your core body temperature No map? It's no problem for monarch butterflies: Researchers find insects migrate using JUST an internal compass Adele tops all-time download chart as UK buys a BILLION digital singles (legally) How Mars lost its atmosphere: Curiosity confirms 'space leak' - but finds there are still dust storms and whirlwinds on the red planet Get ready for bumpier flights from London to New York: Climate change set to increase chances of hitting strong air turbulence Microsoft and Nokia go to war with Google over 'trojan horse' Android phone software Rhino DNA database will allow police to trace ANY horn they find on sale EE set to double Britain's superfast 4G speeds in bid to beat rivals Through the Google Glass: Revealed, the secrets of how search giant's eyewear really works Violent images in movies, TV or computer games CAN act as triggers for aggression, says new report Terrifying condom slingshot hoping to win 65,000 from Bill Gates (but would YOU try it?) Could lip-smacking noises made by monkeys be the start of human speech? Exhaled breath is as 'individual as a fingerprint': Groundbreaking discovery could help spot illness and even replace dope tests for athletes MORE HEADLINES Through the Google Glass: Revealed, the secrets of how search giant's eyewear really works Terrifying condom slingshot hoping to win 65,000 from Bill Gates (but would YOU try it?) Rating 34 Rating 30 Rating 26

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