Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) has announced plans to develop technology that will battle cancer.
The company’s technology can battle computer bugs, and the same principles used to destroy viruses may be used to alter diseased cells. A computer program is examining human DNA in order to determine the way in which healthy cells function.
This principle will be used with cells that are cancerous to revert the damage done to them and turn them into healthy cells. Microsoft hopes to have the tools to break down and eliminate cancer within five or 10 years.
The tech giant has hired a group of the world’s best biologists to work alongside its computer geniuses in order to do so. “Biology and computing are disciplines which seem like chalk and cheese but which have very deep connections on the most fundamental level,” said Chris Bishop, laboratory director at Microsoft Research.
The Bio Model Analyser is already being used to help figure out how to treat leukemia with more success. It is also believed that Microsoft and other tech companies will use smart devices to monitor a person’s health, including our pulse, sleep patterns and other inner workings.
Radiotherapy could also be improved immensely with the research as computers may cut the time of the treatment from hours to sheer minutes.
MSFT stock is up more than 1.2% Wednesday.
