MSGID: 1:317/3 62735318   
   PID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
   TID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
    Bye, bye, biopsy? Handheld device could painlessly identify skin cancers   
    Stevens Institute of Technology uses millimeter-wave imaging to slash   
   rate of unnecessary biopsies    
      
     Date:   
         May 4, 2022   
     Source:   
         Stevens Institute of Technology   
     Summary:   
         A new device uses millimeter-wave imaging -- the same technology   
         used in airport security scanners -- to scan a patient's skin to   
         detect if they have skin cancer. Millimeter-wave rays harmlessly   
         penetrate about 2mm into human skin, so the team's imaging   
         technology provides a clear 3D map of scanned skin lesions.   
      
      
      
   FULL STORY   
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   Skin biopsies are no fun: doctors carve away small lumps of tissue for   
   laboratory testing, leaving patients with painful wounds that can take   
   weeks to heal. That's a price worth paying if it enables early cancer   
   treatment.   
      
   However, in recent years, aggressive diagnostic efforts have seen the   
   number of biopsies grow around four times faster than the number of   
   cancers detected, with about 30 benign lesions now biopsied for every   
   case of skin cancer that's found.   
      
      
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   Researchers at Stevens Institute of Technology are now developing a   
   low-cost handheld device that could cut the rate of unnecessary biopsies   
   in half and give dermatologists and other frontline physicians easy access   
   to laboratory- grade cancer diagnostics. "We aren't trying to get rid of   
   biopsies," said Negar Tavassolian, director of the Bio-Electromagnetics   
   Laboratory at Stevens. "But we do want to give doctors additional   
   tools and help them to make better decisions."  The team's device uses   
   millimeter-wave imaging -- the same technology used in airport security   
   scanners -- to scan a patient's skin. (In earlier work, Tavassolian   
   and her team had to work with already biopsied skin for the device to   
   detect if it was cancerous.)  Healthy tissue reflects millimeter-wave   
   rays differently than cancerous tissue, so it's theoretically possible   
   to spot cancers by monitoring contrasts in the rays reflected back from   
   the skin. To bring that approach into clinical practice, the researchers   
   used algorithms to fuse signals captured by multiple different antennas   
   into a single ultrahigh-bandwidth image, reducing noise and quickly   
   capturing high-resolution images of even the tiniest mole or blemish.   
      
   Spearheaded by Amir Mirbeik Ph.D. '18, the team used a tabletop version of   
   their technology to examine 71 patients during real-world clinical visits,   
   and found their methods could accurately distinguish benign and malignant   
   lesions in just a few seconds. Using their device, Tavassolian and Mirbeik   
   could identify cancerous tissue with 97% sensitivity and 98% specificity   
   -- a rate competitive with even the best hospital-grade diagnostic tools.   
      
   "There are other advanced imaging technologies that can detect skin   
   cancers, but they're big, expensive machines that aren't available in   
   the clinic," said Tavassolian, whose work appears in the March 23 issue   
   of Scientific Reports.   
      
   "We're creating a low-cost device that's as small and as easy to use   
   as a cellphone, so we can bring advanced diagnostics within reach for   
   everyone."  Because the team's technology delivers results in seconds,   
   it could one day be used instead of a magnifying dermatoscope in routine   
   checkups, giving extremely accurate results almost instantly. "That   
   means doctors can integrate accurate diagnostics into routine checkups,   
   and ultimately treat more patients," said Tavassolian.   
      
   Unlike many other imaging methods, millimeter-wave rays harmlessly   
   penetrate about 2mm into human skin, so the team's imaging technology   
   provides a clear 3D map of scanned lesions. Future improvements to the   
   algorithm powering the device could significantly improve mapping of   
   lesion margins, enabling more precise and less invasive biopsying for   
   malignant lesions.   
      
   The next step is to pack the team's diagnostic kit onto an integrated   
   circuit, a step that could soon allow functional handheld millimeter-wave   
   diagnostic devices to be produced for as little as $100 a piece -- a   
   fraction of the cost of existing hospital-grade diagnostic equipment. The   
   team is already working to commercialize their technology and hopes   
   to start putting their devices in clinicians' hands within the next   
   two years.   
      
   "The path forward is clear, and we know what we need to do," said   
   Tavassolian.   
      
   "After this proof of concept, we need to miniaturize our technology,   
   bring the price down, and bring it to the market."   
      
   ==========================================================================   
   Story Source: Materials provided by Stevens_Institute_of_Technology. Note:   
   Content may be edited for style and length.   
      
      
   ==========================================================================   
   Journal Reference:   
      1. Amir Mirbeik, Robin Ashinoff, Tannya Jong, Allison Aued, Negar   
         Tavassolian. Real-time high-resolution millimeter-wave imaging   
         for in- vivo skin cancer diagnosis. Scientific Reports, 2022; 12   
         (1) DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-09047-6   
   ==========================================================================   
      
   Link to news story:   
   https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/05/220504135627.htm   
      
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