A study conducted by Stanford Medicine revealed a significant decrease in older patient preventative cancer screens at their dermatology clinics during the pandemic. This is a problem because early detection is key to better prognosis and effective treatment, and . According to a recent Technology.org article, this finding prompted the development of a mobile application that lets users capture high quality photos of potentially cancerous lesions without having to visit a clinic.
The app is called SkinIO, and it employs a secure portal to deliver said images to a dermatologist for review. It uses machine learning to analyze the photos, scan for abnormalities, and flag ones that look suspicious. During tests, the app flagged 63% of lesions found as requiring further analysis, and the majority of the lesions ended up benign.
