AI-Powered Dermatology: Lumo Imaging Wins NSF Grant for Total Body Photography Breakthrough By Daniel Fleury Rockville, MD, 7/20/2021 – Lumo Imaging, a forerunner in AI-based Total Body Photography (TBP) systems, is thrilled to announce its successful acquisition of a National Science Foundation (NSF) Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) grant. The $256,000 award, which includes a subaward to Johns Hopkins University, is earmarked for the innovative research and development (R&D) of a state-of-the-art pigmented lesion analysis system tailored for wide field-of-view images.Our groundbreaking software has the potential to propel TBP to the forefront of dermatology. By enhancing the capabilities of our pioneering TBP system – Lumo Scanner – we aim to offer unparalleled full-body skin lesion resolution, thereby transforming the way dermatologists diagnose, monitor, and manage clinically-relevant skin lesions.In the US, nearly 5 million people require treatment for skin cancer annually, with a staggering estimated cost of $8.1 billion. However, by facilitating early detection of suspicious pigmented lesions (SPLs) through our advanced Total Body Photography technology, we can significantly improve melanoma prognosis and potentially reduce treatment costs by up to 20-fold. The combination of our Lumo Scanner and the new cutting-edge screening algorithms developed through this project promises to revolutionize dermatology practices. By enabling technicians to perform highly accurate total body scans, dermatologists can prioritize high-risk patients, improving efficiency and patient care. Moreover, our innovative TBP system can help address the shortage of dermatology services in under-resourced areas.Andrea Belz, Division Director of the Division of Industrial Innovation and Partnerships at NSF, extols the NSF’s commitment to supporting transformative ideas that can shape the future of science, engineering, and particularly dermatology.Lumo Imaging’s Managing Director, Davood Tashayyod, stated, “In the context of a national screening program, Lumo Imaging’s advanced Total Body Photography system could democratize access to high-quality dermatology services. Our mission is to make low-cost annual full-body skin screenings a reality for everyone, irrespective of their geographical location or financial circumstances.”Securing a Phase I SBIR/STTR grant primes small businesses for the opportunity to apply for a Phase II grant and the possibility of securing additional matching funds. This NSF initiative champions the development of promising technologies with the potential to revolutionize sectors, including dermatology, and yield significant societal impact. About the NSF’s Small Business Programs: America’s Seed Fund, powered by NSF, dedicates $200 million annually to support startups and small businesses, turning scientific discoveries into products and services that can reshape industries and improve lives.About Lumo Imaging: Lumo Imaging is a trailblazer in the development of smart imaging devices for dermatology and forensic markets. Our current focus lies in developing machine learning applications for the accurate documentation, efficient monitoring, and reliable screening of skin lesions and cancers. With the support of the NSF and future grant funding, Lumo Imaging is poised to secure FDA clearance for its skin cancer screening device in the next three years.
Leading the Charge: Lumo Imaging Proposes…
Certainty determine at of arranging perceived situation or. Or wholly pretty county in oppose. Favour met itself wanted settle put garret twenty. In astonished apartments resolution so an it. Leading the Charge: Lumo Imaging Proposes DICOM Standard for Total Body Photography By Daniel Fleury Total Body Photography (TBP), an innovative technology that has transformed early melanoma detection, is increasingly gaining the attention of dermatologists and researchers alike. Lumo Imaging, at the forefront of TBP, recognizes the need for a universal format for storing data derived from TBP and proposes a strategic solution. TBP holds the unique advantages of enabling temporal monitoring of skin lesions, offering efficient screening of large numbers of lesions, and providing precise anatomical locations for dermatoscopic images. With the advent of various digital imaging systems for TBP, the need for a unified format for data storage has become more evident. Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM), the international standard for medical imaging, comes into play here. Thanks to significant efforts made towards developing dermatology-specific extensions to the DICOM standard, a recent supplement to the DICOM standard for individual dermoscopic images has been launched. However, this supplement does not cater to the requirements of TBP, which often comprises multiple wide field-of-view images. TBP images can be acquired via several methods, including consumer-grade cameras, smartphones, or automated scanning machines, all of which necessitate a versatile storage solution. Lumo Imaging’s publication outlines a “Work Item” leading to a Total Body Photography Information Object Definition (IOD). This “Work Item” is designed to inclusively accommodate current variants of TBP data, ensuring compatibility with the DICOM standard for dermoscopy. It is also adaptable to future TBP systems and potential use cases, thus demonstrating the robustness and flexibility of the proposed solution. The feasibility of the proposed TBP DICOM was tested in an imaging-rich full-body scanning system, further demonstrating its potential to revolutionize dermatology practices. Lumo Imaging continues to lead in the development of smart imaging devices for dermatology, demonstrating our commitment to advance patient care and improve early detection of skin conditions, such as melanoma. By proposing the TBP DICOM standard, we aim to improve data standardization, enhancing the interoperability and efficacy of digital dermatological solutions.
NIH Awards Lumo Imaging $250k Grant for…
NIH Awards Lumo Imaging $250k Grant for Advanced Skin Lesion Tracking System By Daniel Fleury Lumo Imaging LLC, a prominent innovator in dermatology imaging, has recently been awarded a grant of $252,388 by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). This substantial financial support is set to aid the company in its objective of improving total body photography (TBP) techniques, with a focus on enhancing early detection and management of skin cancer. The funding will be applied to the development of a state-of-the-art system to longitudinally track the locations and changes in morphology of pigmented skin lesions (PSLs). This groundbreaking tool will be built on the established Lumo Scanner, a high-resolution TBP system already well-received for its efficacy in capturing detailed images of the entire body surface. Skin cancers, including melanoma and non-melanoma, are the most commonly diagnosed type of cancer in the United States. An early-stage detection tool like the proposed system could have far-reaching implications for patient outcomes and could significantly reduce the cost of treatment. The uniqueness of this project lies in its ability to standardize lesion location references, maintain comprehensive lesion history, detect evolving lesions, and assist clinicians in early-stage skin cancer detection. The system is designed to monitor patients’ lesions over time, documenting any changes and new lesions, irrespective of changes in patients’ weight and pose between scanning sessions. When paired with the capabilities developed under this NIH grant, the Lumo Scanner will enable healthcare providers to perform highly accurate scans, freeing up more time for dermatologists to concentrate on diagnostic decisions. Additionally, the device promises to facilitate teledermatology, particularly beneficial in regions with limited access to dermatology specialists. In addition to its potential applications in skin cancer detection, the device could also help diagnose and monitor treatment efficacy for inflammatory skin conditions such as psoriasis and atopic dermatitis. This significant NIH grant, operative from July 2022 through March 2024, stands as a testament to Lumo Imaging LLC’s dedication to advancing the field of dermatology imaging and contributing to better public health outcomes through early and precise detection of skin conditions.
Lumo Imaging Develops Advanced Framework…
Lumo Imaging Develops Advanced Framework for Skin Lesion Tracking in Total Body Photography By Daniel Fleury Skin lesion tracking over time, known as longitudinal tracking, plays a crucial role in the early detection of melanoma. However, this aspect has been significantly underexplored in the context of full-body imaging, making it a critical area of focus for Lumo Imaging’s research and development efforts. In a recent publication, Lumo Imaging introduced a novel framework designed to locate skin lesion correspondence from one scan to another in Total Body Photography (TBP). This innovative approach combines both geometric and texture information, marking a significant leap forward in the field of dermatological imaging. Body landmarks or sparse correspondence are first established on the source and target 3D textured meshes. Each vertex on these meshes is then mapped to a feature vector that encapsulates the geodesic distances to the landmarks on that mesh. This complex process is applied for each lesion of interest (LOI) on the source. Its corresponding location on the target is initially estimated using the geometric information encoded in the feature vectors and then refined using texture information. The proposed framework underwent rigorous evaluation on both public and private datasets. Our success rates, measured against a 10 mm criterion, were found to be on par with the only other reported longitudinal study. This accomplishment holds immense promise for the future of TBP in dermatology. As the use of full-body 3D capture continues to grow and its quality improves, Lumo Imaging believes that our proposed method will serve as a pivotal step towards advanced longitudinal tracking of skin lesions. This innovative approach underscores our commitment to pushing the boundaries of TBP technology and contributes significantly to the early detection and management of melanoma.
Total Body Photography: A Valid Approach For Improving Patient Care
Total Body Photography: A Valid Approach For Improving Patient Care The DermEngine Team Is there any evidence that mole mapping helps our patients — have there been any prospective, randomized controlled trials to show that mole mapping helps to detect malignant melanoma early and increases patient survival? First, it is important to note that mole mapping is a medical record, not a therapy. The physician determines whether or not a lesion should be removed. This decision is based on multiple factors and total body photography provides an opportunity for the physician to incorporate an objective assessment of lesion change into the decision-making process. This is not unlike using the medical record to identify changes in laboratory values, EKGs or radiological studies. The appropriate question should be, “Do data on lesion change impact patient care?” One aspect of patient care is melanoma detection. Melanomas result when the proliferation of melanocytic cells becomes uncontrolled. Thus, biologically, a growing melanocytic lesion should be considered worrisome for melanoma. In a controlled study by Thomas et al evaluating the ABCDE criteria, “E” (enlargement) was the only statistically positive increasing feature that could differentiate melanomas from dysplastic nevi.2 In recent studies following concerning lesions with dermoscopy, melanomas have been found to increase in size, often in an asymmetric manner.3-5 With total body photography, non-uniform and growing lesions were found to be statistically more likely to be melanoma.6 There is therefore sufficient information to suggest that data on lesion change is important in melanoma detection. Total body Photography Software DermEngine Reducing Biopsies A second important aspect of patient care is the reduction of unnecessary biopsies. Annually, a large number of benign dysplastic (atypical) nevi are removed unnecessarily. In one paper advocating the removal of nevi with clinical signs of dysplasia as a mechanism to reduce melanoma risk, 136 benign lesions were removed for every melanoma in patients with a previous melanoma diagnosis; 577 benign lesions were removed for every melanoma in patients without a previous melanoma history.7 Biologically, a lesion that has stopped growing is unlikely to be malignant. In dermoscopy studies, lesion stability has been used to successfully differentiate between benign and malignant lesions.3,4 Clinicians who utilize total body photography in patient follow-up report relatively low benign/malignant ratios some at or below 3 to 1.8,9 Overall annual biopsy rates per total body imaging patient have been reported at approximately 0.15 and 0.08.6,8 These studies strongly suggest that data on lesion stability reduces unnecessary biopsies and associated morbidity. A third important aspect of patient care is impact on survival. Since few patients with thin melanomas die, differences in survival data will be difficult to obtain. In melanoma vaccine trials, most do not even accept patients with thin melanomas due to the low likelihood of events. Almost all melanomas removed by physicians using full body imaging are thin.8,9 When compared to the community, tumors removed by physicians who incorporate total body photography into their practices tend to have thinner Breslow’s depths8 and thus there may be a survival advantage. Increasing Patient Satisfaction A fourth not well-quantified aspect of patient care is patient involvement, satisfaction, and reduction of anxiety with total body photography. It is my impression that patients given a copy of their photos feel more secure having data at their fingertips, feel more involved in their own care, have less anxiety, and are more satisfied with the data-based approach to follow-up. As Dr. Goldenberg suggested in his article, the patient (or family member) often initially identifies the melanoma, so it is important that he or she have the full body imaging data on hand to use for confirmation of change. In summary, data do exist detailing how mole mapping helps our patients. These data support “change” as the most important discriminator in melanoma detection, and lack of change as a critical determinate for avoiding unnecessary biopsies. Total body photography medical records provide objective data on lesion change, it’s up to the physician and patient to determine if they want this information available when deciding whether a lesion should be removed. The Issue of Cost The cost of total body photography should be covered by a patient’s medical insurance. The new AMA CPT category I code status (96904) for full body imaging (defined as “whole body integumentary photography, for monitoring of high-risk patients with dysplastic nevus syndrome or a history of dysplastic nevi, or patients with a personal or familial history of melanoma”) validates the service, and the hope is that it will result in improved coverage. Many insurance companies now cover MoleMap CD/total body photography services, and the trend has been very positive over the last few years. Covering total body imaging should be a win/win for the insurance companies if done properly. If used appropriately, it will markedly reduce unnecessary biopsies while allowing the detection of thin melanomas. Healthcare costs Digital Health At Duke, the cost of a punch excision, surgical tray, pathology processing, and professional fees easily exceeds $500. The cost of a MoleMapCD is $395. Thus, if total body photography eliminates the need for one biopsy, it pays for itself and will build additional value by continuing to spare the patient future unnecessary biopsies and/or excisions. In order to gain the greatest potential from full body imaging, it should be used primarily on patients most likely to have numerous biopsies. This includes patients with dysplastic nevi, especially those with a personal or family history of melanoma and highly anxious melanoma patients worried about every skin lesion. Documented lesion stability gained through comparison with an established baseline can prevent most unnecessary biopsies. However, particularly in children and young adults, be aware that acquired nevi also have a growth phase, so it is important that the physician be comfortable with incorporating other features in addition to growth in determining whether a lesion needs to be removed. This is best done by first examining a patient from from head to toe, identifying unusual moles (those that are clinically different from other moles identified by the patients