The research, led by the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) and the pan-European team was made up of scientists from eight institutions from Germany, the Netherlands, Portugal and Sweden, received €2.5 million in EU funding. It is an innovative device, a new type of mammogram technique using molecular imaging which could help detect breast cancer earlier.

The technique was researched as part of the MAMMI (Mammography with molecular imaging) project which received €2.5 million in funding under the 'Life sciences, genomics and biotechnology for health' Thematic area of the Sixth Framework Programme (FP6). The MAMMI device offers the highest resolution and sensitivity currently available and it is specially designed to detect breast cancer in its earliest stages. This means it will be used mostly for early breast cancer diagnosis and evaluating how patients respond to chemotherapy. The research has been led by the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC).

Nowadays, whole-body scans are currently used but for the most part these are reserved for those already diagnosed with breast cancer or for people with a high risk of suffering from the disease, and even then the result is a low-resolution image that does not reveal small tumours. The MAMMI device, however, focuses solely on the breasts so the detectors are in very close proximity to them, and can identify tumours in their very early stages.

In addition, the MAMMI device can see lesions as small as 1.5 mm, compared to the 5 mm limit of current machinery. Therefore, while improving diagnosis in all patients, the technique can be particularly effective for women with breast implants or women whose breast density makes obtaining a clear image difficult. The MAMMI device has also proved to provide greater patient comfort, which means it will be particularly useful for treating the elderly and the disabled. This allows specialists to detect the disease much earlier, a development that will be welcomed by those affected; the existing body of research confirms that early diagnosis reduces mortality by 29%.

On the other hand, MAMMI device can also monitor whether a breast cancer patient's treatment is actually working. It does this by showing the uptake of glucose, and revealing whether there are still cancer tissues after an operation. With existing techniques, it is impossible to distinguish tumour tissue from the scar left by the operation. This new type of therapy can also show whether radiation and chemotherapy levels are effective or need to be modified.

Currently, it is being used in Amsterdam's National Cancer Institute in the Netherlands. It has also done a stint at the Technical University of Munich in Germany and it will soon be installed in the Provincial Hospital of Castellon in Spain as well. Hospitals and treatment centres all over the world have shown an interest in purchasing the device.