VOA标准英语2011--Spray Detects Hard-to-Find Tumors

Spray Detects Hard-to-Find Tumors

 

Surgeons may soon have a new tool to help locate early-stage cancerous growths; a spray that turns fluorescent¹ green when it comes into contact with tumors.

The spray is clear, but contains a non-toxic dye that almost immediately glows bright green when it reacts with enzymes² produced by cancerous tumors.

The fluorescent spray was developed by Hisataka Kobayashi, a researcher at the U.S. National Cancer Institute near Washington D.C.

The problem with many cancers, according to Kobayashi, is that their early-stage tumors are too small to be seen with the naked eye.

“The tiny, tiny cancer is very hard to see and then very hard to handle," says Kobayashi, "and very hard to see whether it’s removed from the body or not.”

Current attempts to image tumors - if they are even detectable³ - can take hours to days.

A fluorescent spray, now in development, detects early-stage cancer in mice.

Kobayashi and colleagues conducted experiments with mice in which human ovarian tumors had been induced. Within a minute of spraying the cancerous tissue inside the animals’ open abdominal⁴ cavities, researchers easily spotted⁵ the small tumors, which glowed bright green.

Kobayashi says the spray can help surgeons detect even the tiniest tumors which normally would be missed, increasing the chances for successful cancer surgery and making a recurrence⁶ of the cancer less likely.

Kobayashi says he expects the spray to be approved for human use by U.S. regulators within two to three years. His study describing the fluorescent cancer spray is published in the journal Science Translational Medicine.

1 fluorescent   

adj.荧光的，发出荧光的

参考例句：

• They observed the deflections of the particles by allowing them to fall on a fluorescent screen.他们让粒子落在荧光屏上以观察他们的偏移。
• This fluorescent lighting certainly gives the food a peculiar color.这萤光灯当然增添了食物特别的色彩。

2 enzymes   

n. 酶，酵素

参考例句：

• It was said that washing powders containing enzymes remove stains more efficiently. 据说加酶洗衣粉除污更有效。
• Among the enzymes which are particularly effective are pepsin, papain. 在酶当中特别有效的是胃朊酶、木瓜酶。

3 detectable   

adj.可发觉的；可查明的

参考例句：

• The noise is barely detectable by the human ear.人的耳朵几乎是察觉不到这种噪音的。
• The inflection point at this PH is barely detectable.在此PH值下，拐点不易发现。

4 abdominal   

adj.腹（部）的，下腹的；n.腹肌

参考例句：

• The abdominal aorta is normally smaller than the thoracic aorta.腹主动脉一般比胸主动脉小。
• Abdominal tissues sometimes adhere after an operation.手术之后腹部有时会出现粘连。

5 spotted   

adj.有斑点的，斑纹的，弄污了的

参考例句：

• The milkman selected the spotted cows,from among a herd of two hundred.牛奶商从一群200头牛中选出有斑点的牛。
• Sam's shop stocks short spotted socks.山姆的商店屯积了有斑点的短袜。

6 recurrence   

n.复发，反复，重现

参考例句：

• More care in the future will prevent recurrence of the mistake.将来的小心可防止错误的重现。
• He was aware of the possibility of a recurrence of his illness.他知道他的病有可能复发。