DHAKA: Google is exploring a way to search inside people’s bodies for early signs of deadly illnesses such as cancer or heart disease.

A Life Sciences team at the special projects Google X Lab are experimenting with having ‘nanoparticles’ hunt for signs of medical trouble in bloodstreams and then essentially report findings to sensors people could wear, reports The Times of India.

‘This is still early-stage research, but we’ve done a number of promising experiments, so we’re going to keep going,’ Google said in a description of the project made public on Tuesday.

Imagined applications include a test for enzymes given off by arterial plaques that are about to rupture and cause a heart attack or stroke, or a way to watch for cancer cells after surgery or chemo treatments.

Early detection is known to dramatically increase chances of successfully treating a number of life-threatening diseases.

Batches of specially crafted nanoparticles, each microscopic in size, could be swallowed in pills and then absorbed into bloodstreams where they would stick to targeted cells such as cancer.

BDST: 1407 HRS, OCT 29, 2014