A new easy-to-use tool developed by the B.C. Cancer Agency could provide doctors with a cost-effective and non-invasive method to detect skin cancer in the early stages, reports the Globe and Mail.
Called Verisante Aura, the device uses laser and fibre-optics to test skin lesions for light wavelengths given off by cancer cells.
"We found that certain skin lesions, certain skin diseases, had certain signatures … that would appear to be unique," explained Dr. David McLean, the device creator.
At the Skin Care Centre in Vancouver, the scanner was tested on 1,000 skin lesions and detected every instance of melanoma. Though it will still require confirmation through biopsy due to the occasional false positive, its creators hope that its speed and convenience will make it a practical tool for ruling out cancer.
There is also hope that the device could detect other forms of cancer as well. In time, the tool could be used "anywhere that light can get to," says Dr. McLean.
Medical device company, T-Ray Science Inc., is currently engineering the device for mass production. Each unit will cost about $30,000, and they expect to get Health Canada approval later this year.