The Federal Office for Products and Medicines of the USA (FDA) has recently approved a new portable medical instrument developed by Dermasensor, a medical manufacturer. The device resembles a smartphone with a small elongated tube containing a light bulb at the end. This device aims to assist doctors in diagnosing skin cancers by directing light towards skin formations and analyzing the reflected signal.
The device’s software, trained using an artificial intelligence model, can detect subtle differences in the way cancer cells of the skin reflect light compared to healthy cells. In just a few seconds, the device provides clinicians with the option to either conduct further studies or observe the patient. However, it does not have the authority to make an official diagnosis of skin cancer. The final decision still rests with medical specialists.
Dermasensor’s kit has been trained to analyze various types of skin cancer, including melanoma, flat cell carcinomas, and basal cell carcinomas. The company believes that this AI technology will enable general practice doctors to perform primary diagnostics independently, without the need for specialized doctors. This will help patients save time, money, and allow for earlier detection of the disease, ultimately facilitating treatment.
FDA experts evaluated the Dermasensor software by analyzing research results conducted in 22 different medical institutions, including the American Mayo Clinic. The results showed that the software, coupled with artificial intelligence, had a sensitivity of 96% in detecting positive cases and a specificity of 97% in detecting negative cases among 224 different cases of skin cancer. Additionally, a separate study involving 108 doctors using the device revealed a reduction in missed cases of skin cancer from 18% to 9%.
With FDA approval, Dermasensor will now be able to legally sell its innovative device to doctors throughout the United States. Skin cancer affects one in five Americans, but if detected early, it is highly treatable. Cody Simmons, the co-founder and CEO of Dermasensor, expressed optimism about the potential of artificial intelligence in predicting healthcare outcomes, stating, “We are entering the golden age of predictive artificial intelligence in healthcare, combining new technologies such as spectroscopy and genetic sequencing to optimize disease detection and patient care.”