Exercise 7.2 New devices, aged care and people with disabilities

Spider Pill Walks Through You, Looking for Cancer

October 13th, 2009 by Aaron Saenz

http://singularityhub.com/2009/10/13/spider-pill-walks-through-you-looking-for-cancer/

"Getting your regular colon exam isn’t always popular. Endoscopes don’t come in comfortable sizes. In order to get a better (and less intimidating) view of your GI tract, Italian researchers at the CRIM Lab have developed a new version of a camera in a pill that you can swallow. Unlike previous camera pills, this one comes with remote controlled legs so that doctors can vary the rate at which it travels through you. The ’spider pill’ has been tested in pigs with good results and could be wiggling its way down your intestines in the next year or two."

Having the endured the surgical extraction of a kidney stone the size of 5 cent piece I can relate to micro surgery in a way that people who have not been similarly violated could never know. Small/ microscopic/nanotechnopic is all good to me. No tubes through orifaces! - That's my next billboard. I will join with my brothers and sisters in invasive surgery and together we will raise money to support the diminution of all surgical procedures. And furthermore........

New Cancer Detector Chip Works in About 30 Minutes

http://singularityhub.com/

"So there’s this period of time during a visit to the doctor’s when you’re left alone in the office. You just saw the nurse or PA, and the doctor is playing golf somewhere, so you have to wait in your little paper dress. I was once stranded in that limbo for an hour. Wouldn’t it be nice if that time could be put to good use? Researchers at the University of Toronto have developed a microchip that works with nano-materials to detect biomarkers associated with cancer. Bottom line, in about 30 minutes the new biosensor can determine if you’ve got the ‘Big C’. Having already been proven to work with prostate cancer, the device could one day even be adapted to detect HIV, or H1N1 swine flu. Now that’s a good use of my time."

This would be a great way of improving the service in our hospitals. Why are people suffering pain and uncertainty subjected to interminable periods of time waiting for results? Speeding up the diagnosis process must be able to save lives. Earlier treatment and more accurate medication must improve a sick person's chance of recovery.