万花筒 2010-03-14&03-15 贴膏药治皮肤癌

There are no scare poles ,no pain killing¹ injections needed for this skin cancer treatment ,a harmless cream and a special plaster are all it takes.

Inside the device,a tiny LED light activates² a drug in the cream to create a toxic³ chemical that kills the diseased cells. The Ambulight device works like this,a cream containing an inactive chemical is rubbed into the skin where it's absorbed by cancer cells but not normal tissue. Three hours later,the light in the plaster automatically switches on for a set time,converting the chemical into a lethal⁴ drug,it kills the cancer but leaves the healthy cells alone .

"We are looking 80% to 90% complete cure with it,and what we are hoping is to optimize⁵ that further by looking at various new ways of delivering the light pulsing,for example,so there is a lot of room for improvement."

The treatment is called photo dynamic therapy,it is increasingly being used in hospitals,but up to now it's needed bulky lamps like this by miniaturizing the technology into a sticking plaster. It becomes incredibly simple to use,patients could go to their GP surgery to have the plaster put on and then go home for the treatment.

1 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

2 activates   

使活动，起动，触发( activate的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Activates the window and displays it in its current size and position. 激活窗口，保持当前的大小及位置不变。
• Pulling out the alarm switch activates alarm and pushing it deactivates it. 闹钟的开和关是通过拔出和按入闹铃开关实现的。

3 toxic   

adj.有毒的，因中毒引起的

参考例句：

• The factory had accidentally released a quantity of toxic waste into the sea.这家工厂意外泄漏大量有毒废物到海中。
• There is a risk that toxic chemicals might be blasted into the atmosphere.爆炸后有毒化学物质可能会进入大气层。

4 lethal   

adj.致死的；毁灭性的

参考例句：

• A hammer can be a lethal weapon.铁锤可以是致命的武器。
• She took a lethal amount of poison and died.她服了致命剂量的毒药死了。

5 optimize   

v.使优化 [=optimise]

参考例句：

• We should optimize the composition of the Standing Committees.优化人大常委会组成人员的结构。
• We should optimize our import mix and focus on bringing in advanced technology and key equipment.优化进口结构，着重引进先进技术和关键设备。