AUSTIN, TX / ACCESSWIRE / May 2, 2016 / In an era of smartphone Apps that can track our sleep cycles, scan the night sky for constellations, and help us to communicate globally in times of crisis, the next step for App technology is the incorporation of artificial intelligence. According to the market research firm IDC, by 2018, machine learning (AI) will have been incorporated into almost half of all Apps developed, and by 2020 savings fueled by AI are anticipated to total about $60 billion for U.S. companies. In order to be on the forefront of this new wave of technological advancement, developers are looking to ways in which AI and App technology can be used to not only save money but to save human lives.
"What's so exciting completely different problems like helping astronomers find new planets…or diagnosing diseases," states Mark Zuckerberg, CEO and founder of Facebook, in a recent speech, establishing the possibilities that come with advances in artificial intelligence. "In a lot of ways," Zuckerberg goes on to say, "advances in AI can help save people's lives."
Citing an App as an example of the way in which commonly accessible technological advances may be used for life-saving purposes in regards to medical care, Zuckerberg states that he has seen "an AI system that can now tell from a photo whether a lesion on your skin is skin cancer with the same accuracy as the best doctors in the world." This ability of AI and App technology to supplement and advance medical care is what DermaCompare takes to the next level.
According to DermaCompare's website, the medical App "empowers people to take care of their own health," requiring little more than a smartphone camera for "Total Body Photography" in order to track changes in a user's skin and detect potential melanoma development. Developed by Israeli-based company Emerald Medical Applications, the DermaCompare App is both FDA approved and HIPPA-compliant, allowing doctors to use the simple technology of a smartphone camera accompanied by DermaCompare's patented comparing algorithms to identify suspicious melanoma moles. According to CEO of Emerald Medical, Lior Wayn, the App can be downloaded with any device that has a digital camera, making it a highly accessible medical tool. "The problem is time and money…accuracy and availability," says Wayn, all problems that DermaCompare's simple and effective application addresses.
Just as the accessibility and scope of DermaCompare is game changing, the technology used by Emerald Medical is on the cutting edge. The AI utilized in DermaComapre is based off of cloud-based Israeli Defense Department photo comparing technology, which allows a more efficient way to track the growth of melanoma beyond manual comparison by eye. Though the technology is advanced, the steps necessary for use are simple and outlined once you have downloaded the App.
According to Wayn, once a user takes the requisite Total Body photos and uploads them to their DermaCompare cloud for storage, the App 1) compares the images to any preexisting images in the file as well as to any relevant images of the 50 million provided on the company's database for comparison to known moles; 2) the App creates a summary regarding any urgent data about the images along with alerts to any suspicious elements in those images; and 3) the App notifies the user's physician to retrieve and review the images.
DermaCompare's model of simplicity, accuracy, and accessibility in diagnosing skin cancer is already receiving international recognition. In April of this year, the inaugural Innovation Competition of International Talents in Shenzhen, China, awarded third prize to DermaCompare out of twenty-five other competing companies selected from 1500 entries compiled from preliminary competitions in the United States, Japan, Israel, Germany, and Australia.
Along with the App's success in China, DermaCompare was distinguished by the Israel-Brazil Chamber of Commerce as "most likely to succeed in Brazil." According to a 2015 study, "melanoma constitutes less than 5% of skin cancers but is responsible for around 95% of skin cancer deaths." In Brazil, the study goes on to say, "it is estimated that 6000 new cases [of melanoma] occur each year, resulting in 1300 deaths." It is in this country that DermaCompare is expected to change the way people interact with live-saving medicine.
In response to international success, Wayn says, "I believe this is because our DermaCompare technology is uniquely suited to succeed in large markets where the sheer size of the country and vast population can make it difficult to secure a visit with a dermatologist and achieve early diagnosis for melanoma." For countries like China and Brazil, Wayn says, "early detection can mean the difference between life and death."
As the landscape of App technology continues to shift and become increasingly competitive, DermaCompare's model of simplicity, accessibility, and accuracy for new ways to prevent life-threatening disease has allowed Emerald Medical to carve itself a space in the forefront of AI utilization in our everyday lives.