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Optical transfer diagnosis differentiating benign and malignant pigmented lesions in a simulated primary care practice
Author(s) -
Swanson D.L.,
Venneugues R.V.,
Vicencio S.Q.,
Garioch J.,
Biryulina M.,
Ryzhikov G.,
Hamre B.,
Zhao L.,
Castellana F.S.,
Stamnes K.,
Stamnes J.J.
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
british journal of dermatology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.304
H-Index - 179
eISSN - 1365-2133
pISSN - 0007-0963
DOI - 10.1111/bjd.16282
Subject(s) - medicine , biopsy , melanoma , dermatology , skin cancer , lesion , cancer , incidence (geometry) , melanoma diagnosis , primary care , radiology , pathology , physics , family medicine , cancer research , optics
Summary The incidence of the type of skin cancer called melanoma is on the rise. The detection of melanoma can be difficult, particularly for clinicians who have limited training (compared to dermatologists who specialize in skin) in telling the difference between normal moles (nevi) and melanomas. The noninvasive optical transfer diagnosis ( OTD ) method is a technology designed to assist in the screening of lesions (e.g. moles) that might be melanomas. In this study, from the U.S.A., U.K. and Norway, the authors took images using OTD and then analysed 712 pigmented lesions (which could be moles or melanomas). Of them, 415 were harmless, or ‘benign’, and 297 were suspicious when examined by specialists using a magnifier called a dermatoscope. After image capture, all of the suspicious moles were biopsied and the tissue samples were examined under the miscroscope. Of the suspicious lesions, 80 proved to be cancer on biopsy (64 melanomas, and 16 other types of skin cancer). OTD misdiagnosed 1 of the 80 cancerous lesions as benign. If verified in further studies, particularly in actual primary care settings, it is likely that the use of OTD technology could help doctors reduce the number of referrals to dermatologists, excision (surgical removal of the lesion), or biopsy, and reduce costs. Further studies are planned for screening patients in the primary care (e.g. GP ) setting, with comparisons of OTD results to the gold standards of pathology or dermoscopy.