The Power From People's Phones And Computers Could Be Used To Treat Childhood Cancer?

The innovation of technology could be applied to the field of science and medicines, but this one is different. The Japanese scientists utilize the power of people's phones and computers to aid in treating cancer.

The system was developed by Akira Nakagawara and his colleagues at the Saga-ken Medical Center Koseikan. They named it the World Community Grid (WCG), according to CNET.

There are about over 650,000 people who participated the World Community Grid (WCG) and have been of aid to about 28 research projects. These include searches for more effective treatments for cancer, HIV/AIDS and other tropical diseases.

One project is known as the Smash Childhood Cancer (SSC) that uses the World Community Grid. It asked anyone with gadgets such as smartphone, tablet or computer to contribute unused computing power to control drug simulations, which could take thousands of years on one computer. Akira Nakagawara, who led the SSC project applied the WCG for treating the neuroblastoma, which is a type of cancer that affects mostly infants and young children, according to WBTV.

Akira Nakagawara said that computing processing that would need 55,000 years to be done by a single usual computer was finished in just two years. His team is now applying the WCG to cure other types of childhood cancer. These include Wilms' tumor, brain tumors, hepatoblastoma, germ cell tumors and osteosarcoma.

The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) stated that about 300,000 children have cancer every year. Some of them were treated and survived. On the other hand, it is reported that approximately 80,000 children diagnosed with cancer died every year all around the globe.

If some want to participate in the said project and donate unused computer power from their gadgets to run medical simulations, they could register here. The power of help is indeed effective.