Scientists at the University of Pennsylvania Working Dog Center are training canines to detect ovarian cancer by smell, reports the USA Today.  Blood and tissue samples donated by ovarian cancer patients were used to help identify a scent profile.  The dogs are trained to bark when they detect it in a set of samples.  The USA Today video remarks that many ovarian cancer cases are not identified until they are in late stages.  These dogs may be able to identify the scent sooner, saving lives.

“There is mounting evidence that dogs might be effectively trained to detect patients with various form of cancers due to the presence of a characteristic ‘odor signature,'” the researchers wrote in the study’s abstract.

For now, three canines are being trained and rewarded with toys when they identify a cancerous sample.  Scientists hope that, in the future, they will also be able to identify the olfactory profile and chemicals that make it up.  Then, they will be able to create diagnostic equipment that can do the “sniffing” instead of bringing dogs into doctors’ offices.

“If we can figure out what those chemicals are, what that fingerprint of ovarian cancer is that’s in the blood — or maybe even eventually in the urine or something like that — then we can have that automated test that will be less expensive and very efficient at screening those samples,” said Cindy Otto, director of the Working Dog Center, according to The Associated Press.

According to its website, the Working Dog Center was established in 2007 to train detection dogs.  The Center also gathers data, conducts research, and fosters collaboration to improve the quality and accuracy of detection dogs.  Given their heightened sense of smell, canines can help detect potential threats to national security and find victims after a disaster. The Center is using research to improve the use of detection dogs by considering canine genetics, nutrition, behavior, and other factors.

The University of Pennsylvania is not the only organization working to train cancer detection dogs.  According to its website, the In Situ Foundation conducted two federally funded studies that examined the accuracy of canine scent detection for early and late stage cancers of the lungs, breasts, and ovaries.  They are currently working on early detection of stomach and pancreatic cancer and have already successfully trained dogs to identify the presence of E. coli in urine.

This area has evidence supporting its potential dating back several years, but scientists continue to work on developing its application.  In 2006, National Geographic reported that a study showed dogs were able to detect cancer on a person’s breath.  Dogs are able to identify chemical traces as small as a few parts per trillion.  With the biochemical markers that come with cancer, dogs can detect what human medical professionals cannot.

In 2010, CBS News reported the story of Jerry Douthett who woke up from a drunken stupor missing a toe.  In the night, his dog had chewed it off.  The dog had not suddenly snapped and attacked his owner.  On the contrary, he detected an infection in the toe from diabetes that had gotten out of control and ate the infection.  Doctors confirmed that the dog likely saved his life.