Dogs may be key to sniffing out cancer

A skin specialist said dogs can be used to sniff out cancer.

In a new report entitled Sniffer Dogs In The Melanoma Clinic, Professor Howell Williams of the Queens Medical Centre in Nottingham claims a border collie sniffed out a cancerous mole on a patient's leg.

He said he diagnosed the skin cancer after the woman visited her GP when the dog tried to bite off the mole.

It had spent years before sniffing and licking the mole.

Professor Williams said dogs can detect subtle changes to the skin caused by cancerous cells.