A better device for early breast cancer detection is expected to be available in 2013-2014.
Any woman who’s endured the pain and embarrassment of a mammogram would welcome a painless alternative. Even better would be one that doesn’t subject her to radiation. Best would be a device that doesn’t crush her breasts, is radiation-free, and gives highly accurate results.
The good news is that the desired better system is on its way. First Warning Systems, a company founded in Reno, Nev., in 2008, is now testing a smart bra that comprises all the things a woman wants in a testing device .
The Breast Tissue Screening Bra tracks very small temperature changes in breast tissue while a woman wears it. These tiny changes are hugely significant, for they take place as veins that feed tumors grow. Pattern recognition software installed on any ordinary PC receives information from the sensor, helping to detect tumors as much as 6 years earlier than a mammogram can.
The smart bra has proven to be 92.1% accurate in three clinical trials with 650 participants. This is a great improvement over the 70% accuracy of mammograms.
Another advantage of this device over mammography is that with highly accurate test results, there will be less unnecessary surgeries – less emotional and physical stress for women (and some men).
First Warning Systems plans to put the smart bra on the market in Europe in 2013. Pending FDA approval, it will appear in the U.S. in 2014.
Here at Green Prophet, we hope that health ministries in Middle Eastern countries will approve and import this device soon. We’ve posted on the rising incidence of breast cancer in Israel for Jewish and Arab women. Among other factors, widespread water pollution in Israel, Lebanon, Cyprus and Egypt breed a long list of diseases that includes breast cancer.
More information on how long a woman should wear the bra for testing, and the cost of the test, would be welcome. In the meantime, it’s great to look forward to a better early detection system for breast cancer.
More on breast health and alternative remedies:
- Turn Night Lights Off To Avoid Cancer
- Pakistani Tea May Help Avoid Breast Cancer
- Anti-Cancer Turmeric Spice
Author: Miriam Kresh
Miriam Kresh is an American ex-pat living in Israel. Her love of Middle Eastern food evolved from close friendships with enthusiastic Moroccan, Tunisian and Turkish home cooks. She owns too many cookbooks and is always planning the next meal. Miriam can be reached at miriam (at) greenprophet (dot) com.
