Smartphone users will be able to help scientists beat cancer using the world’s first app designed to unravel genetic data.
‘Citizen scientists’ will be able to play the space-based game to help highlight flaws in the genetic make-up of cancer patients.
The Cancer Research UK game Play to Cure: Genes in Space is set 800 years in the future. Players are challenged to steer their spaceship to collect a valuable material, called Element Alpha.
Gamers map out their route with the aim of collecting as much Element Alpha as possible.
As they navigate their craft through space they are actually mapping out genetic data, which will later be analysed by scientists.
The app is free to download from the Apple App Store and Google Play.
Hannah Keartland, who is in charge of the citizen science project at the charity, said: “Our scientists’ research produces colossal amounts of data, some of which can only be analysed by the human eye – a process which can take years.
“Every single second gamers spend playing our smartphone game directly helps our work to beat cancer sooner.
“What we know is that cancer cells have faults in their genes and what our scientists are able to do is produce a map of the genetic make-up of cancer cells. What we have done is taken a map of those cancer cells and we have incorporated it into the game.
“As you steer your spaceship through Element Alpha you are mapping a path behind you. It’s that path that you have mapped out that is really useful to the scientists because it will help them to identify where the peaks and the troughs are in the data.
“We know there are faults in the genes when there are copied bits, so duplicated bits of gene data, or there are missing bits, and the peaks are where there are copied bits and the troughs are where there are missing bits.
“By understanding exactly where those peaks and troughs are, we can understand where to go and look for faults in genes that might be linked to cancer.”
Players will be analysing data collected from 2,000 breast cancer patients from three hospitals in the UK and two in Canada.
Each section of gene data will be tracked by several different players to enhance accuracy, a spokeswoman said.
Cancer Research UK hopes that players from around the world will help highlight variations in gene data by playing the game. Scientists will be able to use the data to work out which genes are faulty in cancer patients, the charity said.