Glowing dye may aid in eliminating cancer

(University of Pennsylvania) When a solid cancer is surgically removed, any small piece that is left behind increases the chance of a local recurrence or spread. In a pilot study of dogs with mammary tumors, a disease very similar to human breast cancer, a team from the University of Pennsylvania found that an injectable dye, which glows under near-infrared light, illuminated cancerous growth in the primary tumor as well as in lymph nodes.