Patent Document ID: 9678059
Application ID: 13697554
Patent Flag: 1

Claim One:
1. A method of diagnosing, monitoring or prognosing cancer or identifying a benign or malignant tumor in a subject, the method comprising the steps of: (a) providing a system comprising (i) a sensor array comprising five sensors, wherein each sensor comprises Au nanoparticles capped with an organic coating selected from the group consisting of tert-dodecanethiol, 2-ethylhexanethiol, 2-mercaptobenzyl alcohol, 2-mercaptobenzoazole and calixarene; and one sensor comprising Pt nanoparticles capped with benzylmercaptan, and (ii) a learning and pattern recognition analyzer wherein the learning and pattern recognition analyzer receives sensor signal outputs and compares them to stored data; (b) exposing the sensor array to a test sample selected from exhaled breath and at least one bodily fluid or secretion of the subject; (c) measuring a response of at least one of said sensors upon exposure to the test sample, wherein the measured response comprises a change in resistance or conductivity of the sensor upon exposure to the sample, processing the signal and extracting a plurality of response induced parameters from the measured response of the at least one sensor, wherein said response induced parameters are selected from the group consisting of full non steady state response at the beginning of the signal, full non steady state response at the beginning of the signal normalized to baseline, full non steady state response at the middle of the signal, full non steady state response at the middle of the signal normalized to baseline, full steady state response, full steady state response normalized to baseline, area under non steady state response, area under steady state response, the gradient of the response upon exposure to the test sample, the gradient of the response upon removal of the test sample, the time required to reach a certain percentage of the response upon exposure to the test sample, and the time required to reach a certain percentage of the response upon removal of the test sample; and (d) using a learning and pattern recognition algorithm to analyze the plurality of response induced parameters extracted from the measured response and comparing them to a stored data control compiled from a set of control samples, whereby statistically significant difference between the response induced parameters of the test sample and the control, evaluated by the learning and pattern recognition algorithm or by a statistical significance test, is indicative of cancer or a malignant or benign tumor.