Google wants to detect diseases with magnetic nanoparticles

Google hopes to detect diseases such as cancer early with magnetic nanoparticles. It is a project of Google X, the branch of the search giant that deals with groundbreaking projects. Google is also working on a wearable that can track the magnetic particles.

More than 100 Google employees are working on the project, The Wall Street Journal reported. The magnetic nanoparticles should bind themselves to body cells, proteins and other molecules in the body, after which they should be able to recognize diseases. In addition, users would be provided with a wearable device to track the nanoparticles.

Google expects it to take at least five years before the magnetic nanoparticles can actually be deployed. The company doesn’t yet know how many particles are needed to detect evidence of disease, and Google has yet to find a way to get the particles into the potential patient’s body. One of the ideas is to use a pill that has to be swallowed.

The use of nanoparticles that are introduced into someone’s body is not just possible; to actually implement the idea, Google will have to demonstrate to the American authorities, among other things, that it is a safe method.