U.S. researchers have recently stated that skin cancer can easily be determined because of its specific scent. The scent is given by a distinctive chemical that can diagnose skin cancer easier than any other tests.

Scientists from Philadelphia's Monell Center discovered that directing the air above basal cell carcinomas makes it different to similar samples from healthy skin. They also offered a cheap and painless test for patients suspected on skin cancer.

Other researchers seem to have used more practical methods. They used dogs to sniff out bladder tumors from urine samples. The researchers at Philadelphia's Monell Center stated that the skin has and releases chemicals, called "volatile organic compounds,” that have a specific scent.

After this discovery, the new available test for patients will consist of a gas chromatography-mass spectrometry which will help in identifying the precise chemical composition of the skin.

The study was made on 22 patients who were divided into two groups. 11 of them had basal cell carcinomas and the other 11 didn’t. All the air samples had the same ingredients, but the test marked the fact that the cancer patients had markedly different concentrations of certain chemicals.

"Our findings may someday allow doctors to screen for and diagnose skin cancers at very early stages," Dr Michelle Gallagher, presenting the results of the project at the American Chemical Society's annual conference, said.