Doctors and researchers at Maastricht University’s teaching hospital are running trials with a machine which screens women for breast cancer on the basis of a breath test the NRC reports.

Women being screened blow into the machinery and their breath is then analysed for substances which indicate they may have the cancer. Breast cancer is the biggest killer of Dutch women aged 25 to 44, the NRC said.
If successful, the breathalyser would be an alternative to the current screening method which many women consider painful. However, mammographies and x-rays may still be necessary to confirm the presence of the disease, the NRC said.
The device was invented by an American company which is running tests in three locations worldwide. One hundred women are involved in the Maastricht trials.