NASA - NASA Contributions to Cancer Research

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NASA Contributions to Cancer Research

Since its founding in 1958, NASA's exploration and research missions have benefited people around the world through the expansion of our civilization's horizons, the acquisition of knowledge, and the development of new technologies and applications that provide amazing new advances in the quality of human life. What follows is a brief overview of how technologies developed through the Nation's investment in aerospace research have come back down to Earth to benefit the medical community in its understanding of cancers and cancer treatments.

NASA Partnered with National Institutes of Health (NIH)

NASA has partnered recently with the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to use the U.S. portion of the ISS for medical research, including cancer studies.
ISS Near-Zero-Gravity Environment

On the ISS, the near-zero-gravity environment could allow researchers to develop three-dimensional cancer cell clusters.
Higher-Purity Protein Crystals

Higher-purity protein crystals may be grown in space than on Earth.
NASA Developed a Bioreactor Device to Simulate Reduced Gravity

NASA developed a bioreactor device to simulate the effect of reduced gravity.
LED Photodynamic Therapy Research

LED Photodynamic therapy research has been applied to activating cancer drugs once they have been pinpointed inside a tumor.
CCDs Have Been Adapted to Detect Small Masses in Breast Tissue

Charge-coupled devices (CCDs) used in the Hubble Space Telescope to convert a distant star's light directly into digital images have been adapted to improve existing methods for physicians to detect small masses in breast tissue.
NASA Designed by NASA for Analysis of Mammography

Software Designed by NASA to Significantly Improve the Extraction of Patterns from Complex Data Sets.
Safer Methods to Decrease Exposure to Harmful X-rays in Mammographies or Breast Radiography

NASA scientists, in conjunction with industry and academic researchers, discovered a safer method to decrease exposure to harmful X-rays in mammographies or breast radiography.
The Potential of Carbon Nanotubes to Diagnose and Treat Brain Tumors is Being Explored.

The Potential of Carbon Nanotubes to Diagnose and Treat Brain Tumors is Being Explored.
Working with ARC, Amnis Corporation Designed a Method that Allows Users to View Whole Cells at the Same Time

Working under a Small Business Innovation Research contract with NASA's Ames Research Center, Amnis Corporation designed a method that allows users to view whole cells at the same time, rather than just one section of each cell.
The BioScan System Locates Cancerous Lesions by Detecting the Cancer's Ability to Recruit a New Blood Supply

The BioScan System Locates Cancerous Lesions by Detecting the Cancer's Ability to Recruit a New Blood Supply