Looking for cancer cells with VR technology? Cambridge scientists tell you that this is by no means a joke
Release date: 2017-02-14
For humans, cancer is a long-standing problem, and scientists working on it are trying out the latest technology to try to capture this fortress. For example, a team of scientists at Cambridge University has brought VR into cancer research.
According to Cambridge News, two cancer research projects at Cambridge University have been funded by Cancer Research UK, which will provide them with 400 billion euros in the next five years. Among them, Professor Greg Hannon will lead a project to build a 3D model of breast tumors with VR technology.
Professor Greg Hannon
According to Cambridge News, this may open up a new way to research and treat breast cancer.
Currently, 3D scans of tumors and other cancers have been made, but this technology can provide more detail and allow researchers to interact inside. Hannon believes that VR has provided some unprecedented help so far:
I think this technology is not only to help people study the origin of cancer, but also to help people study how organic matter develops. All biological problems occur in the three-dimensional world, but in this world, the collision and communication between cells and cells, It is currently impossible to capture any technology we have.
Specifically, they cut the breast cancer samples into very thin sections, which were then imaged by the investigator and analyzed to record the genetic makeup of each cell. All of these slices are recombined into a 3D model that researchers can sneak into and observe through VR devices.
This technology includes a "superman mode". You can even let the user fly into the inside of the tumor (imagine the scene where Sun Wukong is tumbling in the belly of the lion's lion's lion's lion), and see what each cell looks like, what kind of what it is, and what it is.
They also presented a process map for creating a VR tumor. It can be seen from the figure that there are five steps: First, get a detailed tumor reference map. Second, dry the tumor slices. Third, in-depth study of the genetic information of the slice. Fourth, the information is processed and the tumor is reconstructed in VR. Fifth, users can wear multiple VR helmets at the same time, enter the tumor, view and analyze.
Cancer observation process
Of course, it is of course very difficult to do this. Professor Hannon described it as such: "This is a huge challenge. It is as difficult as sending a person to Mars. There are too many technologies to develop."
In fact, this is not the first time that VR has been used in cancer research.
Last year, the Wellcome Medical Center in New York City had a similar approach. They developed a new program for the Oculus helmet that allows users to see and interact with the 3D model of microscopic proteins.
The project, titled “IPM VR†(Precision Medicine VR Institute), is also designed to make it easier for researchers to determine where the patient's DNA is mutated and how mutations occur to find out where the lesion is.
However, the structure of the protein is three-dimensional, and the stereoscopic effect is lacking by observation in paper or on a computer in 2D mode. If the clinician does not see the 3D protein model, they cannot fully understand the effects of the mutation. VR can provide researchers and clinicians with an immersive approach to examining patients' unique genetic mutations.
“It provides a VR world that allows you to be completely immersed in the structure of the cell,†Dr. McGee, director of the 3D Visual Aesthetics Laboratory at the School of Art and Design at the University of New South Wales, describes this peculiar feeling:
"When you wear a VR helmet, headphones, and a controller in your hand, you seem to shrink into a small person who is only 40 nanometers tall and can walk over the surface of the cell."
In addition, the Oculus helmet is equipped with a motion sensor that detects the direction you are seeing. The IPM VR also uses some external cameras (not in the helmet) to further track your body and hand movements.
At present, the application of VR in the field of cancer treatment is mainly focused on the observation of cell cancer. Although VR is definitely not a replacement for computers, you can get some information that you can't get in other ways.
Forgetting cancer is a headache. Opening up a VR journey in cancer cells, scientists may get a lot of new research inspiration and creativity in the process.
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Source: 36 æ°ª
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