New 'Spider Pill' Roams Body Hunting Cancer

Camera pill first to be fully remote-controlled
By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff
Posted Oct 12, 2009 10:47 AM CDT
New 'Spider Pill' Roams Body Hunting Cancer
The experimental pill probably doesn't actually look much like this.   (Shutterstock)

It sounds like something out of science fiction, but a tiny robotic spider could save your life. Scientists have created a pill-sized camera that, once swallowed, can deploy mechanical legs and roam the body looking for cancer or other maladies, the Daily Telegraph reports. The “spider pill” is controlled wirelessly by doctors. Though camera pills have existed before, this is the first remote-controlled version, and could improve cancer treatments. It’s currently being tested on pigs, but doctors expect human trials soon. (More cancer stories.)

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