“The potential applications of magnetic sensor technology for future medical devices are nothing short of profound,” says Steven Van Fleet, President of Micromem Applied Sensor Technologies, Inc. (MASTInc), a wholly owned U.S. subsidiary of Micromem Technologies Inc., a Canadian-based company at the forefront of Magnetic Random Access Memory (MRAM) research and development.

“Imagine a wristwatch-sized device that could be used non-invasively, ‘see’ under the skin surface, and continuously monitor patient glucose levels, thereby allowing diabetics to continuously test their blood sugar accurately multiple times throughout the day without the need to prick their fingers,” Mr. Van Fleet describes. “The ability to have a constant monitoring of a key life-value such as serum glucose for diabetics or other critical enzymes, hormones, proteins, etc., would forever change the way we manage diseases and deliver healthcare.”

How would such magnetic sensor-based medical devices work? While the premise might sound science fiction-worthy, underlying the technology is based on the simple idea that everything in the world exhibits a unique magnetic signature. Taking the glucose monitoring device as an example, very specific magnetic sensors could be calibrated to detect specific magnetic moment behaviors at certain frequencies of glucose molecules in the blood, and measure these levels in a known unit volume.

“We’re starting with glucose but not ending there,” explains Van Fleet. “The technology shows the potential for any number of breakthrough medical diagnostic applications including measurement of spinal fluid without a spinal procedure; detection of chemical or biological agent exposures; serum oxygen content monitoring; cholesterol level and pregnancy tests, and breast and prostate cancer screening.” Thanks to magnets, the days of needles as a first-line diagnostic tool may soon be numbered. Visit www.micromeminc.com for more information.

IRG
Susan Morgenbesser, 212-825-3210