Illustration by Sam Swift

Could ants become a cancer detection tool? Scientists at the University of Sorbonne Paris North say the insects might be able to use their acute sense of smell to identify the disease in humans. Early detection is critical with cancer—the top cause of death worldwide—because patients have a better chance of recovery if a tumor is discovered early. Current diagnostic tools can be costly and invasive, but now scientists think ants might help. Their antennae can detect many things—including, it turns out, the chemicals that tumor cells release. In a recent study, ants were trained to recognize the smell in the urine of mice with cancerous tumors. Previous research has shown that dogs and mice can also sniff out cancer, but experts say ants may have an edge because they’re easier to care for and can be trained quickly. The preliminary findings are encouraging, but more research is needed. “[Ants] have impressive learning abilities,” says Baptiste Piqueret, who led the study. “If ants can detect cancer directly from human samples, more people might get tested and treated efficiently at an early stage of the disease.”