Dogs Can Smell Cancer

April 22, 2001 Nottingham, UK

A new report will be published this month, entitled "Sniffer Dogs in the Melanoma Clinic."  In this report, Professor Howell Williams of Queen's Medical Centre cites two cases in which a dog was able to detect a cancerous growth in a human.

In one instance, he describes how a border collie saved a woman's life:

"The woman had a mole on her leg for several years and her dog would repeatedly lick or sniff it.

"One day the dog tried to bite the mole off. At this point the lady was so concerned that she went to see her GP."

The woman was referred to Professor Williams, who found that the mole was malignant melanoma—an aggressive skin cancer. 

Professor Williams believes that dogs can smell the infinitesimally subtle changes in cancerous cells.  He has recommended that dogs be used as a diagnostic aid.

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