A team of physicists from the University of Sydney has come up with a new way to detect cancerous tumors and that is by using diamonds. Using the new technology, called non-invasive Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scans, the researchers were able to identify the onset of cancer much earlier than previous technology.

A nano scale, synthetic version of a diamond, was used to light up cancerous tumors in the early-stages of the disease. The researchers have credited a 2013 research project called DINAMO, funded by the European Union, to create a new method for scientists using which they could study the molecular processes that occur in living cells.

Study's lead author David Reilly from the School of Physics at Sydney University said that they have studied the nanoscale diamonds' ability to diagnosis cancer in very early stages. Professor Reilly said that being mostly non-toxic and non-reactive, they have having high hopes from nano diamonds.

"We thought we could build on these non-toxic properties realizing that diamonds have magnetic characteristics enabling them to act as beacons in MRIs. We effectively turned a pharmaceutical problem into a physics problem", said Reilly.

Experts said that it is the not the first time when efforts are being made to treat cancers with specialized treatments. But there is often struggle involved in the path of the chemicals once they have been administered to patients. The team is hoping to test the technology on animals to assess its efficacy.

"By attaching hyperpolarised diamonds to molecules targeting cancers the technique can allow tracking of the molecules' movement in the body," said Ewa Rej, the paper's lead author.
"This is a great example of how quantum physics research tackles real-world problems, in this case opening the way for us to image and target cancers long before they become life-threatening," said Professor Reilly.