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Explosives detection dogs trained to identify cancer
dog's nose
Over 40,000 new cases of prostate cancer are diagnosed every year, making it the most common cancer in UK men (file photo).
Dogs detect prostate cancer with over 90 per cent accuracy

A pair of German shepherd dogs have been trained to detect prostate cancer with well over 90 per cent accuracy, according to an Italian study.

The two explosion detection dogs were trained to recognise volatile organic compounds linked to prostate cancer in urine samples.

More than 900 patients' samples were involved in the study, of whom 362 had cancer (ranging from low risk to metastatic) and 540 were healthy controls.

Findings published in the Journal of Urology demonstrate remarkable accuracy in the dogs' ability to identify cancer.

Over 40,000 new cases of prostate cancer are diagnosed every year, making it the most common cancer in UK men.

Current tests used are most commonly blood tests, physical examination and biopsies.

Results from the blood test, which measures the level of prostate-specific antigens (PSA), can be unreliable as a raised PSA can also be due to non-cancerous prostate growth, urinary tract infections or prostate inflammation, as well as cancer. Raised PSA can therefore lead to unnecessary tests and treatment.

Claire Guest, co-founder of the UK charity Medical Detection Dogs, said the results of the Italian study were "spectacular". The charity's own research has found 93 per cent accuracy in dogs' ability to recognise prostate cancer.

Writing in the Journal of Urology, researchers say further work is needed to determine how valuable this ability will be in identifying prostate cancer in practice.

Read the full study: http://www.jurology.com/article/S0022-5347%2814%2904573-X/abstract

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RCVS Knowledge appoints Veterinary Evidence editor-in-chief

News Story 1
 RCVS Knowledge has welcomed Professor Peter Cockcroft as editor-in-chief for Veterinary Evidence.

A world-renowned expert in evidence-based veterinary medicine, Prof Cockcroft will lead the strategic development and editorial quality of the open-access journal. He was previously in the role from 2017-2020.

Katie Mantell, CEO of RCVS Knowledge, said: "We are excited about the extensive knowledge of evidence-based veterinary medicine and clinical veterinary research that Peter brings, and we look forward to working with him over this next phase of the journal's development." 

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CVS Group hit by cyber attack

CVS Group, which owns more than 450 veterinary practices in the UK, has been hit by a cyber attack.

In a statement, the group said the incident involved unauthorised external access to a limited number of its IT systems. As soon as the attack was discovered, the group took its IT systems temporarily offline, causing 'considerable operational disruption'.

It has warned that the security steps taken and ongoing plans to move its operational systems and IT infrastructure to the Cloud are likely to have an ongoing impact over a number of weeks.

Due to the risk that personal information was accessed, CVS has informed the Information Commissioner's Office. The company is working with third party consultants to investigate the incident.