The vial in my hand contains just one millilitre of blood – barely enough to fill a thimble.
But by tomorrow it could reveal whether I have one of the six most deadly cancers – lung, breast, colon, ovarian, pancreatic or stomach.
Known as a multi-cancer early detection test, or MCED, this kind of technology could soon simplify the process of spotting cancer in its earliest stages, when treatment has a far higher chance of success.
There are other types of MCED being trialled on the NHS today, but what makes this one, known as ExoPert, remarkable is how accessible it could be.
Last week I met its Korean inventors at CES, the world’s biggest tech expo, in Las Vegas.
They told me the machine they’ve created to analyse the blood sample is so simple to use it could be operated at pharmacies.
ExoPert is currently being assessed by US health regulators, and could be available in the UK by 2028.
So, potentially, in a few years you could pop into Boots and get screened for cancer.
Mieke Leonard with an ExoPert vial, which can be analysed in just 30 minutes
The ExoPert machine takes just 30 minutes to perform its analysis, but requires the blood sample to be frozen overnight. It means you get results the next day.
‘It could change the lives of millions, allowing cancers to be found in a much earlier stage, when they’re far more treatable,’ lead researcher Dr Hyunku Shin told me.
If the concept sounds vaguely familiar, that’s because it is: something strikingly similar was launched in the US in the early 2000s.
Called Theranos, its creator, Elizabeth Holmes, claimed her easy-to-use machine could perform hundreds of tests using a tiny finger-prick sample of blood.
The ‘revolutionary’ technology was rolled out to chains of pharmacies. The company founded by Holmes was valued at $9 billion at its peak, and she featured on magazine covers, hailed as ‘the next Steve Jobs’, Apple’s founder.
There was one snag – Theranos didn’t work. Holmes was jailed for 11 years for fraud in 2022.
ExoPert, however, may fare better, and is part of a wave of MCEDs currently in development worldwide.
One, created by US biotechnology company Grail, is even being tested in a 140,000 person trial by the NHS.
If successful the health service has agreed to purchase at least one million tests, at a cost of about $950 (£750) each. But not without controversy. A report published in the British Medical Journal last summer called the partnership into question, deeming the test ‘overhyped’.
While Grail claims its test – called Galleri – can identify 50 types of cancer, studies have revealed a much lower accuracy rate.
A 2020 study showed Galleri detected just 43.9 per cent of cancers in stages one, two and three, while a study published the following year put its accuracy rate at detecting stage one cancer at just 16.8 per cent.
MCED tests such as Galleri look for DNA fragments shed by tumour cells, which are released only after a tumour cell dies. This means these tests are better at picking up cancers once they’ve advanced and spread, which slightly defeats the point.
ExoPert instead examines particles released by living cells as they pass information between them.
Studies have shown these signals, known as extracellular vesicles, could be a more accurate bellwether for the presence of cancer.
The ExoPert research team found that tumours in different parts of the body release different patterns of signals – allowing them to develop AI algorithms to locate the tumour.
Unlike other MCED tests being developed, it doesn’t require a team of specialists to analyse the results – meaning it costs less than half the price of the Galleri, for example.
A clinical trial used the test to diagnose lung cancer. It detected cancer in almost 70 per cent of patients with early stage disease.
University College London consultant oncologist Professor Hendrik-Tobias Arkenau said MCEDs are ‘the future of cancer care’.
While the ExoPert test may not be available in the UK for a few years, other products at the CES convention could improve your health tomorrow.
Read on for some of the most promising inventions I saw while there…
Instantly soothe sore muscles anywhere
The Calopad can both heat and cool muscles – attaching to your arm like a plaster
Made from a flexible piece of plastic with a small metal thermostat, this Swiss-made pain relief device (pictured left) can go from 42C (109F) to 8C (47F) within just three seconds.
‘The Calopad is the world’s thinnest all-in-one therapy device for pain relief and muscle recovery using deep heat and cold,’ says co-founder and chief executive Michael Breiter.
‘It can be stuck anywhere on the body, and compared to conventional heat patches, it’s reusable, side-effect free and has 100 per cent natural healing effects.’
While the original Calopad can provide only heat therapy, the Calopad Pro, launching in Europe this year, contains ultra-thin foils that can cool as well, making the device usable for sprains and strains as well as aches and pains.
Once applied to the affected area, a button activates the heating or cooling mechanism, which radiates across the plaster almost instantly. And unlike other heating or cooling patches, the Calopad can last for up to eight hours with one battery charge. The plasters that attach it to the body aren’t reusable, however, and need to be swapped out every eight or so wears.
Cleans teeth in 20 seconds… and detects cancer and cavities
The Feno Smartbrush has a scanner in the U-shaped mouthpiece
With 18,000 bristles crammed in, the Feno Smartbrush is quite a mouthful, but its creators claim it can remove plaque and fully clean teeth in just 20 seconds.
A scanner in the U-shaped mouthpiece can also track and analyse your oral health, providing reports that pick up on cavities, gum disease and even cancerous lesions.
Creator and oral surgeon Dr Kenny Brown said: ‘It’s not replacing the dentist, but it can signal when you may need to pay them a visit.
‘The scanner in the mouthpiece can pick up on anything from inflammation to abnormal tongue patterns, so hopefully it can help you get potentially serious issues dealt with much sooner’.
When I tried it, as expected the Smartbrush fit slightly uncomfortably in my mouth – and when switched on it caused the entire lower part of my face to shake. But as it was for only 20 seconds, it wasn’t too bad – and it did leave my teeth feeling cleaner than after my trusty manual toothbrush.
The Feno Smartbrush is available in the US with plans to expand into Europe (feno.co).
But it’s thin enough to slip unnoticed beneath clothing – and does provide an enjoyable warmth to my bicep when I stick it on.
The Calopad is available now for $220 (£180), with the Calopad Pro set to hit the market early this year (calopad.com).
Fast test to fine tune hormonal balance
The Hormometer, from Canadian start-up Eli Health, promises to make monitoring your hormones as easy as it is to brush your teeth.
It’s a saliva test that measures cortisol, the stress hormone, as well as progesterone, a reproductive hormone that, if imbalanced, can lead to fertility problems, irregular periods and depression.
You collect your saliva sample by placing the tip of a special swab in your mouth, waiting for two lines to appear and scanning the test with the Eli app. It gives results instantly.
‘Cortisol and progesterone have a major impact across many different areas of health for women,’ the company’s founder, Marina Pavlovic Rivas, tells me. ‘Our test can both explain what’s happening with your hormones, but also help guide you on actions you can take in order to improve your hormonal balance.’
The company had only its cortisol test available at CES, so I take that one. Surprisingly, it states that my levels are normal for the time of day – they naturally fluctuate from morning to evening – despite the chaos around me.
If you’re not so lucky, however, the app also offers advice on how to lower your cortisol levels.
These tips may include getting more sleep and exercise or improving your diet.
The Hormometer is available in the US at $8 (£6) for a month’s worth of tests and should be available internationally later this year (eli.health).
Glasses that help AMD sufferers see again
More than 600,000 Britons suffer from age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a devastating eye disease that causes the blurring, and eventually the complete loss, of central vision.
There’s no cure. But now a New York-based optical company say they can offer patients a glimmer of hope.
The SolidddVision smartglasses look and feel, for the most part, like a normal pair of glasses.
But inside this pair is a panel made up of hundreds of tiny lenses – almost like a fly’s eye – that project multiple images to the areas of the retina not yet damaged by the disease.
This allows the brains of those with macular degeneration to naturally construct a single 3D image that feels like normal, in-focus sight.
Neal Weinstock, Solidd’s chief executive, says the glasses provide sight ‘in areas of the visual field where patients otherwise see nothing’.
A recent clinical study showed the glasses improved reading ability by more than 50 per cent for macular degeneration patients – with some regaining the ability to read entirely.
The company has not yet set a release date (soliddd.com).
Stethoscope with AI to analyse your lungs
StethoMe can tell you whether you have signs of pneumonia or other respiratory diseases
Struggling to get a GP appointment but concerned you – or your child – may have the flu?
When pressed on to the chest or back for just a few seconds, the monitoring device StethoMe can tell you whether you have signs of pneumonia, bronchitis or any number of other respiratory diseases. The best part? It’s all from the comfort of your own home.
The ‘smart’ stethoscope, pictured above, takes high quality recordings of the lungs. It then uses AI to create a comprehensive medical report that can be viewed on your smartphone – or sent straight to your doctor.
You simply turn it on and select what sort of exam you want on your phone. The device’s built-in screen will then walk you through the process.
Once it has taken the measurements, a report will appear on the app detailing everything from heart and respiratory rate to any concerning wheezing, crackling or rhonchi – gurgling caused by fluid – coming from the chest.
A history of examinations can be found in the StethoMe app.
Wojciech Radomski, the company’s co-founder, says that the StethoMe can also be used to detect asthma attacks earlier and more accurately.
The product is already a certified medical device in Europe and will soon be available for purchase on Amazon for about £200 (stethome.com).
A spoon that will shock your taste buds. Literally.
This device uses an electric current to fool your tongue into thinking you’re tasting salt
Need to cut down on salt but can’t stomach the idea come mealtimes? This electric spoon could be just what you need.
One of the more peculiar offerings at CES this year, the Electric Salt Spoon can help you keep sodium levels low by tricking your tastebuds into making bland foods taste more flavourful.
Kirin’s device uses an electric current to fool your tongue into thinking you’re tasting salt. By changing the intensity, you can even adjust the level of ‘saltiness’ to your taste.
It promises to make low-sodium foods more palatable, meaning those who are on doctor’s orders to reduce salt intake to lower their blood pressure don’t need to miss out at dinner time.
But does it work? While a novel idea, the spoon is unfortunately slightly too bulky for easy use, and to activate the current it needs to be clutched in a counter-intuitive, almost fist-like hold.
It makes eating soup quite messy – actually, it went everywhere. That said, I can verify that it did make the soup taste saltier… if you can get enough of it into your mouth, that is.
Kirin’s Electric Salt Spoon is available in Japan but should be coming to Europe and the US soon (kirinholdings.com).
