October is Breast Cancer Awareness month, so let’s get down to business and talk about some boobs; ya know… for your health! Breast Cancer awareness starts with you, ladies. It is imperative you give yourself exams monthly to make sure everything is A-OK with your chesticals. If you aren’t exactly sure how to give yourself an exam, speak with your doctor. Early detection is key to a successful treatment and recovery. When it comes down to it, cancer doesn’t care who you are or what your plans are in life; when it pops up, you want to be the first to know so you can get the proper treatment you need. In a rare lapse of judgement, I’m gonna throw out a YOLO here, since well… it’s true. Especially in this case.
As we push further into the future with medical and technological advancements, we are coming up with more methods for early detection. One of the cooler developments comes from First Warning Systems Inc. out of Reno, Nevada. They are manufacturing a “smart bra” which they claim is capable of detecting breast cancer in the wearer. Using 16 temperature sensors, the bra is able to detect “deep-tissue temperature changes” from the growth of new blood vessels which could be related to cancer cells. This test takes about 12 hours to do–not that it’s any trouble for you… the smart bra is built like a regular, comfortable sports bra which you can wear all day.
The bra features a special software that actually remembers and recognizes the patterns of known cancer cases. The software is able to provide a physician with the probabilities of the presence of cancer based on the data it collects versus the previous patterns in the system. They noted, ”The computer, ultimately, has an advantage because it has a perfect memory, and additional data can be integrated into the analysis such as age, family history, age at first birth, in ways that the radiologists cannot”.
First Warning Systems is even insisting that the noninvasive screening is more accurate that mammogram X-rays, which are the current standard for breast cancer detection. FWS held three separate clinical trials which involved 650 women of all ages. The smart bra technology had a 90% accuracy rate, with false readings occurring in less than 10% of the trials. As of September, FWS has begun raising $5 million towards their full clinical trial (which will hopefully meet European Union regulations and get FDA approved in the US). The money will aid in creating a clinic-ready device as well as preliminary tests of said device outside of a clinical setting. FWS is targeting 2014 for the smart bra to be launched in the U.S market. It is their hope that women will be able to obtain an easy and accurate breast cancer screening device.
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