This is a real surprise to me – I didn’t even know that Melanoma Detector Apps existed (to be fair, I’ve only just found Dubsmash), but I thought it’s worth flagging up that they’re being deeply frowned upon, Stateside. The Federal Trade Commission has taken on marketers of two ‘melanoma detector’ apps to stop them from claiming that apps can help with the diagnosis of a melanoma; in other words, they’re SO suing them!
The bottom line – and what’s important to us – is that app’s claims are found to be unsupported. Detecting warning signs of skin cancer via a picture of your mole, or, as claimed, determine what the chances might be that your mole is cancerous (even at early stages) are big claims and the FTC considers that there isn’t enough evidence to support those possibilities.
So, don’t use Melanoma Detector Apps – do the sensible thing and go and see your doctor or pop into a mole clinic if you’re really concerned. Melanoma apps aren’t, at this stage, any kind of indicator – I mean, an app that diagnoses cancer? No. Just. NO. And, it’s probably better not to consult Dr Google either – I’ve had all kinds of serious illness thanks to Google. My doctor disagrees and I’m here still to tell the tale, so guess who was right!
Saying this, I’ve just spotted the Mole Clinic Telederm service that uses an iPhone and an App but the difference here is that it’s for use within GP surgeries and the user (doctor or nurse) needs a special, high quality imager to record the mole picture correctly. You can’t buy it at the bloody App Store!!
Leave a Reply