A robot to detect skin cancer?

“Dr Swan” is a doctor like no other… Developed over five years by the start-up française SquareMindit is actually a robot. In an article from Parisian dating from September 29, 2024, he reveals his secrets to us.

Swan is composed of a electronic arm equipped with a camera extremely precise. The latter, similar to the magnifying glass of a dermatologistonly needs five minutes to take photos of the lesions and moles of a patient. These photos are then analyzed using software.artificial intelligencewhich compares them with those of the previous meeting, but also with its database.

Towards a replacement of the dermatologist?

Rest assured: the objective of what a robot is not to replace a doctor in the fleshbut to assist him. The dermatologist remains the one who gives the final opinion after analysis. But Swan allowsautomate certain tasks to gain speed and productivity. He can also refer for additional examinations.

Ultimately, the designers of the tool hope that Swan’s examination can be carried out remotely from the doctor, who will then only have to receive the photos. They think, for example, of specialized medical centersor even health buses. The latter have been developing for several years and are crisscrossing France to try to alleviate the problem of medical deserts.

Indeed, according to a Sanofi study, it took an average of 104 days in 2023 to see a dermatologist in France. It is one of the specialties that must face the lack of renewal of practitionerswhich is not going to get better in the coming years.

A common but preventable cancer

Initiatives like Swan intervene in a context where skin cancers are the most common in France. Among them, the melanoma kills 2,000 people each year in France, according to Santé Publique France.

However, if it is diagnosed very earlya patient suffering from this cancer has 99% chance of survival. This is why solutions like Swan are growing. A test will soon be conducted in three medical centers in Franceand its designers hope to eventually develop their solution throughout the country.