Pakistani engineer invents early cancer detection device

Samir Iqbal, who is also an electrical engineer at University of Texas at Arlington College of Engineering as well as an associate professor, briefed his results in a report titled “Effects of Nano-texture on Electrical Profiling of Single Tumor Cell and Detection of Cancer from Blood in Microfluidic Channels”.

The device works by pursuing the behavior of the cells in real time with the use of nanotextured walls which imitated the layers of the body tissues.

Iqbal cooperated with Young-tae Kim, a UTA associate professor in the Bioengineering Department; Muhymin Islam, a STEM doctoral candidate; and engineering students Mohammad Motasim Bellah, Adeel Sajid and Mohammad Raziul Hasan for the project.

“The answer was in creating a nano-textured wall that fools blood samples into thinking its actual tissue. We used inherent properties of the cell walls to create a diagnostic tool. The cancer cells behave differently as they come into contact with the nano-textured walls. They dance” Iqbal said.

He also said that the identification of the dancing cells will help doctors locate cancer cells and start treatment earlier with the technology.

Iqbal said said that the discovery of cancer in the initial stages is essential for the patients and the device has the potential to do it.

Khosrow Behbehani, Dean of the UTA College of Engineering, termed Iqbal’s research as groundbreaking and added that he and his colleagues were bringing engineering innovation to meet the challenge of cancer’s early detection.

Iqbal completed his Bachelors from NED University of Engineering and Technology in Karachi in 1996 after which he did his PhD from Purdue University in Indiana. He is a professor in the Department of Urology at UT Southwestern Medical Center.

The scientist is a senior member of IEEE-USA as well.

National Science Foundation funding of $480,000 in 2014 has led to the results of the results.