“Specialists at the Novosibirsk Research Center first successfully tested it on lab rodents, and then, in collaboration with their colleagues at Tomsk Polytechnic University, moved on to tests on large animals, according to Sputnik News Agency.

The press release specified that the types of cancer suffered by these mammals are too similar to those affecting humans, and the major problem is the research to the dynamics of the animals’ condition after a course of neutron absorption therapy.

Until recently, the tomograph needed to carry out the research existed only in a veterinary clinic, and the examination of animals was too pricey.

According to Vladimir Kaniguin, Director of the Nuclear Medicine Laboratory at the Physics Faculty of Moscow University, the research process in Novosibirsk should speed up after the arrival of a new-generation tomograph at the educational institution.

The scientist recalled that preclinical trials on large animals are key to testing a technology before moving on to human trials.

“Based on the results of previous tests and new capabilities in terms of equipment, Novosibirsk University expects to take this step in the very near future,” Kaniguin pointed out.

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