TLDR Breast cancer may be detectable through changes in scalp hair lipids.
Researchers found a correlation between breast cancer and changes in the X-ray diffraction (XRD) pattern of scalp hair, with XRD-based assays detecting about 75% of breast cancer patients in blinded studies. The study suggested that these changes were likely due to breast cancer-associated phospholipids in the hair. Identifying and characterizing these lipids could lead to a new, sensitive, and specific screening test for breast cancer, initially using hair and potentially other biological samples.
23 citations,
October 2007 in “International journal of cancer” X-ray diffraction of hair might help detect breast cancer non-invasively.
42 citations,
January 2005 in “Applied spectroscopy” Hair from breast cancer patients shows changes in structure and composition, and a test using these changes detected cancer but also falsely identified some healthy samples as cancerous.
27 citations,
September 2018 in “Medicines” Oleic acid nanovesicles improve minoxidil absorption in hair follicles for alopecia treatment.
November 2024 in “International Journal of Molecular Sciences” Nanoparticles may improve caffeine delivery for hair growth, offering a potential alternative to minoxidil for hair loss treatment.
1 citations,
September 2023 in “Molecules (Basel. Online)” Plant sterols have health benefits like lowering cholesterol, but more research is needed to understand their effects and improve their extraction and sustainability.
5 citations,
December 2023 in “Materials” Organic and biogenic nanocarriers can improve drug delivery but face challenges like consistency and safety.
30 citations,
November 2015 in “Advanced Pharmaceutical Bulletin” Nanoethosomes can improve the skin penetration of Lidocaine for topical use.
