Frédéric Leblond in the running for discovery of the year
The cancer cell detection probe developed by Louperivois Frédéric Leblond and Kevin Petrecca, of Polytechnique Montreal and the Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital, could well be the discovery of the year in Quebec. Quebec Science magazine invites the public to vote for the discovery of the year 2017.
The jury of experts brought together by the magazine selected 10 exceptional scientific breakthroughs from universities and laboratories in Quebec, including the probe of MM. Leblond and Petrecca, but it is the public vote that will decide the debate.
The Quebec probe identifies cancer cells during surgeries with a sensitivity of 100%. It is a major advance in the fight against cancer and especially in the resurgence of cancers already treated such as those of the brain or prostate.
The publication of the study by Cancer Research, of which Louperivois is one of the authors, caused a stir last June.
Québec Science received 124 applications this year, a record. The vote ends on February 14th. To vote, just click HERE: http://www.quebecscience.qc.ca/decouverte2017
PROBE
Frédéric Leblond and Kevin Petrecca founded the company ODS Medical in 2015 when their research began in 2012. They are convinced of the commercial potential of their work. Ultimately, the company wants to sell its probe in hospitals.
The instrument, coupled with artificial intelligence, which is barely bigger than a pen, has a sensitive camera. The optical probe uses laser technology to measure the light scattered by molecules, allowing surgeons to detect, via a clever algorithm, intensive cancer cells in their way of reacting to this light, in practically real time.
“Current existing techniques such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) are not fast, specific and sensitive enough to be able to detect very low densities. Our technology does. By identifying all the cancer cells, we make sure we don’t leave anything behind, ”summarizes Frédéric Leblond.
Too often, it is impossible to visually distinguish bad cells from normal cells, especially in the brain, hence the frequent persistence of invasive cancer cells after the operation.
Identifying these cells could therefore greatly reduce the risk of recurrence and recurrence of certain cancers. The work of Frédéric Leblond and Kevin Petrecca therefore arouses great interest within the medical community.
Read the article here