Skin cancer detector
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The existing method of skin cancer screening is a visual process. If a dermatologist suspects cancer, the problem area is excised and sent to a lab for analysis. The client, Dr. Donald Schuster, tasked the team with creating a device that can noninvasively analyze a mole or lesion to determine whether or not it is cancerous. Both temperature and impedance measurements can be used to determine if a mole is cancerous. Preliminary research shows that cancer tissue can be 0.5ºC warmer than regular skin. Furthermore, cancerous tissue has a lower electrical impedance than regular skin. A change in electrical impedance would further assist their diagnosis. To allow for the most accurate measurements, the diameter of the probe is 2 mm which ensures that only the mole/lesion in question is considered when taking a measurement. Measurements will be taken by inducing a current through the skin and measuring the voltage across it. Using Ohm’s law the impedance is calculated. Due to malfunctions in the circuit the device is not yet ready to take measurements from human skin. Rather, it was tested on resistor networks with the measurements output to the Arduino’s serial monitor. Testing between an LTSpice simulation and the Arduino’s output proved no statistical significance in the actual device output. Thus, it is not yet ready for diagnostic purposes. In the future, the team hopes to improve the circuit to accurately test the circuit on resistor models then move on to testing on live tissue.
Team Picture
Contact Information
Team Members
- Alexander Zoellick - Team Leader
- Luke Le Clair - Communicator
- Crysta Frank - BSAC
- Aleysha Becker - BWIG & BPAG
Advisor and Client
- Prof. Paul Thompson - Advisor
- Dr. Donald Schuster - Client
- Prof. John Webster - Alternate Contact