The latest study, published in Nature Aging, demonstrates the system’s use as a tool for tracking this biological signal in lung cancer models, alongside evidence that the same activity is also present in experimental models of pulmonary fibrosis.

Rather than detecting cancer directly, the system measures a biochemical signal associated with senescence-related processes in diseased lung tissue. Matrix metalloproteinase-7 (MMP-7) was identified as a key marker linked to senescence-associated activity in lung cancer biology, particularly in the context of therapy response, and is also observed in pulmonary fibrosis.