Learning to See Cancer in Early Detection Research

Bibliographic Data

ID3634848
AuthorsIgnacia Arteaga (0000-0001-5610-6419, University of Cambridge, corresponding author), Ignacia Arteaga Pérez
Year2021
Volume8
Issue2
Pages1-25
Publication date2021-08-18
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueMedicine Anthropology Theory (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2405-691X • E-ISSN: 2405-691X
PublisherEdinburgh University Library (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.17157/mat.8.2.5108
OpenAlexW3194710031
LanguageEN
Citations received6
References cited24

This article explores how scientists learn to detect 'pre-cancer', a new diagnostic category defined by the risk of developing the titular disease. This process entails the observation of 'raw signals' that stand for potential molecular and metabolic changes in animal and human tissues and their validation as 'candidate biomarkers'. I draw on ethnographic fieldwork conducted alongside a multidisciplinary group of researchers-physicists, biologists, mathematicians, computer scientists, and engineers, among others-all of whom worked as part of a research programme investigating the early signs and detection of cancer in the UK. 'Signals' detected through scientific experiments are intimately entangled with the sensing technologies and analytical techniques used. As previously unknown microscopic realities emerge, scientists seek to negotiate the uncertainty surrounding the identification and validation of signals as candidate biomarkers before they can be tested in clinical trials

Biology · Data science · Engineering ethics · Multidisciplinary approach · Negotiation · Social science · Sociology · Computer Science · Engineering · Health, Environment, Cognitive Aging · Ecology

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