A leading Israeli scientist at a premier research institute of the country is developing a 'cancer-sniffing' device, a media report has said.

Hossam Haiek, a researcher at the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, has won a grant of almost $2 million to develop an 'electronic nose' to sniff out cancer, the Jerusalem Post said.

The researcher aims to develop tiny, nanometric sensors that can detect various types of tumors and determine various stages of the disease using samples from a patient's breath.

Haiek is expected to set up a new lab and hire researchers from Israel and abroad to develop the diagnostic device, the report said.