Researchers light up lungs to help diagnose disease

An image using the new technology of a healthy lung. Click here for more information.

Researchers at the University of Sheffield have developed innovative technology which illuminates a person’s lungs and helps clinicians identify if they are functioning correctly. The new technology could result in earlier diagnosis of emphysema and smoking related damage, as well as other lung conditions and diseases.

Lung diseases are of growing concern to the health of the nation, with people suffering from conditions as mild as asthma or as severe as lung cancer. By detecting lung damage early, doctors could help slow down or stop the conditions.

An image of a person's lung who has emphysema. Click here for more information.

The technique developed at Sheffield involves a person inhaling small amounts of harmless hyperpolarised (HP) noble gases (Helium-3 and Xenon-129), which are then imaged inside an MRI scanner. The gases are hyperpolarised using high power lasers by a process called optical pumping. The high resolution images of the airspaces that are produced offer additional functional information that is currently not available with traditional X-rays and lung CT scans.