We are already starting to use our phones for more and more things in life. Music, cameras, videos, games, social networking and a whole host of other applications are all turning our phones into indispensable items that provide us with so much more than mere communication. But could they soon turn into our very own portable doctors?

Well, this could soon be a reality after a prototype handset was displayed at the International Nanotechnology Exhibition & Conference that claimed to be able to detect diseases in the user simply through breathing onto it.

The prototype has been created by AND (Applied Nanodetectors Ltd), which has teamed up with Nokia. It consists of a Nokia N95 handset complete with a chip containing sensors that can detect gases including CO2 and ammonia. It can then work out the density of each gas in the user's breath to see if there are any diseases present.

AND is a specialist in nanotechnology, and it has already released a list of the types of diseases the phone will be able to detect, which include diabetes, asthma, lung cancer and food poisoning. On top of detecting the disease, it will also alert the user’s doctor.

If it does get released, it will be nothing short of revolutionary. Oral odour level sensors are already available, but to be able to detect so many diseases, and to have the device fitted into a mobile handset, is a huge step forward.

It is all very much in its early stages and there are no release dates as yet. However, it provides an insight into just what we might be using our mobile phones for in the future.