According to a study dogs can sniff out cancer
Any dog owner will tell you the canine species is the best in the world – dogs are loyal, intelligent and love you unconditionally. But now dog lovers have another reason to add to the list – it seems our furry friends can quite accurately sniff out cancer.
In an Italian study conducted by the Humanitas Clinical and Research Center, researchers trained a pair of three-year-old female German Shepherds to identify volatile organic compounds specific to prostate cancer. The dog’s sniffed the urine samples of 540 non-prostate individuals (some had other medical conditions, including other types of cancer) and 362 patients diagnosed with the disease in various stages.
The dog duo returned with an astonishing 98 per cent accuracy reading. One of the dogs detected every single case of prostate cancer and only hit false positives in two per cent of cases. The other dog was almost as accurate.
While further testing needs to be carried out, the study results suggest quick and accurate new ways to screen for the disease in the future. It further adds to a growing body of research that finds that dogs can smell the by-products of various types of cancer.