Laser scanner detects cancer in under 30 seconds

Skin cancer diagnosis can take weeks, involving referral to a dermatologist for a skin biopsy, and then possibly an invasive sentinel lymph node biopsy under general anaesthetic to find out if the tumour is spreading.

The new technology, developed in a European project led by UK-based Michelson Diagnostics, could dramatically speed up this process by allowing dermatologists to diagnose a malignant melanoma in real time.

The scanner allows dermatologists to view a 3D image of the blood vessels under the skin, up to a depth of 1mm.

The technology is based on Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT), conventionally used in retina scans, in which a laser beam is projected onto tissue and the reflected light is detected by a microscope and used to create a 3D image.

Unlike conventional OCT, however, the new technology, known as dynamic OCT (D-OCT), is able to detect motion within the tissue, according to Jon Holmes, co-founder and chief technology officer of Michelson Diagnostics. This reveals the flicker of light patterns created by moving blood cells against the background of solid tissue.