Now your smartphone can detect pancreatic cancer
This is amazing
Researchers in Washington have created a simple, accurate way to self-test for pancreatic cancer via smartphone, said Mallory Locklear at Engadget. The app, BiliScreen, works with a smartphone's camera, using "computer vision algorithms to detect levels of the chemical bilirubin in the whites of a person's eyes." Bilirubin levels increase as pancreatic cancer develops and render the whites of the eye yellow. By the time the yellow coloring is visible to the naked eye, the disease is typically well advanced, with a low survival rate. But BiliScreen can detect very low levels of bilirubin and give users an assessment of their risk for the disease.
The team at the University of Washington says the app is easier and cheaper than a blood test, and can be used before any symptoms are apparent. BiliScreen operates now with a special eye box to "block out ambient light" or with paper glasses, but developers aim to have the app functioning without accessories this month.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
-
'Good riddance to the televised presidential debate'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
Caitlin Clark the No. 1 pick in bullish WNBA Draft
Speed Read As expected, she went to the Indiana Fever
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Today's political cartoons - April 16, 2024
Cartoons Tuesday's cartoons - sleepyhead, little people, and more
By The Week US Published