AI support for cancer prevention
Kiwi skin cancer check app, Firstcheck has partnered with artificial intelligence health app Your.MD, to allow smartphone users to get in touch with skin specialists without entering a clinic.
With this partnership, Your.MD’s machine-powered health platform will now refer users with skin concerns to Firstcheck.
Users of the app can submit photos of a skin mole for review via their mobile device, which will then be sent to a doctor or specialist.
Firstcheck co-founder Hayden Laird, said innovation in the digital health space was key as more people looked to online websites to search symptoms, which could often lead people in the wrong direction.
‘‘Skin cancers and melanomas can usually be treated successfully if caught early enough. We’re trying to get things picked up much earlier, because skin cancer is preventable and a survivable disease,’’ Laird said.
New Zealand currently has the highest rate of skin cancer in the world, with 356 deaths in 2013 from the disease.
Laird said the app connected users to over 35 skin doctors and specialists across Australia and New Zealand.
While the app was free to download, users must pay a minimum of $20 to send the photos and details to a qualified dermatologist, who was able to assess whether the patient needed urgent treatment, or alternatively, advise what they needed to look out for in the future.
Users can also purchase a smartphone dermoscopic lens that captures magnified images of moles.
The app has already reached over 10,000 downloads in Australia and New Zealand. Firstcheck launched with $500,000 in investment capital from New Zealand angel investors and the New Zealand Venture Investment Fund.