Wearable tech has introduced novel methods of symptom monitoring and disease screening. A bra that contains a flexible ultrasound device soon could be added to the burgeoning list.
A prototype for such a bra patch successfully identified a cyst in a 71-year-old woman, STAT News recently reported.
Although the patch is in the early stages of development, the device — composed of honeycombs and shaped roughly like a lacrosse stick net — could attach to a bra via magnets. It has a miniature, rotating ultrasound scanner that can image breast tissue as deep as 8 centimeters under the skin.
There are approximately 300,000 new cases of breast cancer each year. The median age at diagnosis is 62, according to the American Cancer Society.
At least one study found that the most common form of breast cancer screening, the mammogram, is not necessarily useful for nursing home residents, particularly those aged 75 or more years. That finding, however, was due to the population subset being far more likely to die from other causes, making such routine screenings superfluous, the research stated.
The device is not yet ready for prime time; the current model cannot distinguish between cancer and benign lumps. The goal, however, is to conduct clinical trials and, if it is found to be viable, the device would provide an easier, cheaper screening option than current methods, the researchers claim.
One of the researchers, Canan Dagdeviren, PhD, suggested that one way to address the false-positive issue is to pair the device with artificial intelligence trained to spot the differences.
For the moment, the most promising advancements in wearable disease screening are aimed at monitoring heart conditions, the McKnight’s Tech Daily has reported; similar to how the breast cancer screener may replace mammograms, a wearable textile-like patch is in development that could supplant traditional electrocardiograms.
