New Device Can Help Detect Breast Cancer Early

Illumina 360° is a device that detects the risk of breast cancer in women of all age groups. It was launched by CURA Healthcare company in Chennai.

‘Illumina 360°’, a new device that aids in screening for breast cancer has been launched by CURA Healthcare, which is a healthcare technology company in Chennai.

M. Bala, president, and CEO of the company spoke to media persons at the event. He explained that in India, the number of breast cancer cases are rising.

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‘Illumina 360° device is robot-assisted that is painless and has no risk of radiation.’

One in every 28 women is at risk of breast cancer and 1 in 2 die due to late detection.

N Kannan, head of new product development at CURA said that the reasons why women do not go for screening could be due to the risks of radiation, lack of awareness, an embarrassment of showing their breasts and also fear of pain.

Nearly 280 million young Indian women are at risk for breast cancer. Only a majority (about 70%) of them still came in late for treatment and screening was hardly done, said Mr.Bala.

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“The challenges are lack of awareness, painful examination, the risk of radiation from the screening and breast exposure, which many women are uncomfortable with,” he said.

Therefore, CURA designed a product to combat these challenges.

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The device uses an infra-red camera placed on the robotic arm, helps in studying the breast tissue from 360°. It can detect even a minute change in temperatures, indicating the abnormality.

Illumina 360° is painless, has no risk of radiation, minimizes exposure and can also be repeated, said N. Kannan.

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“Over 5,000 patients in six institutions were screened with the device,” he said.

The device could detect tiny lesions. It can observe changes much earlier than any other screening procedures and has an accuracy rate of 97 percent.

Sandeep Jaipurkar is a radiologist at Vijaya Health Centre and Breast Clinic and one of the key partners in the development of ‘Illumina 360°.’

Sandeep Jaipurkar said that the changes in temperature were read at a workstation, and only the breast tissue was examined.

The device is expected to be priced at around ₹30 lakh.

The company is preparing for a commercial launch and has the support of Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC), Department of Biotechnology, Government of India.

Source-Medindia