There's a new app out there that's promises to help people check for skin cancer. It's called Miiskin.
It's the first app to use artificial intelligence to do full-body skin mapping. It also uses augmented reality to track how moles, freckles and skin change over time.
Doctors say apps like these can actually help during this pandemic.
“That has led to a significant decrease in visits for screening such as colon cancer, lung cancer, and skin cancer is of course one of those that actually is affected by the pandemic,” said Dr. Arturo Loaiza-Bonilla with Cancer Treatment Centers of America.
When doctors and patients are dealing with cancer, time is of the essence.
Tools like this app don't replace doctor's visits, but they can help with early detection.
“One month of losing a cancer that was just newly found is almost a 10% increase in mortality, so if the screening comes a year later when the cancer is already starting, then we are in a pretty dark situation,” said Loaiza-Bonilla.
Doctors at the Cancer Treatment Centers of America say that while the apps shouldn't replace a full physical assessment, they can be used as an additional tool to track new moles and see how certain things develop.
If you are at a higher risk for skin cancer and want to use one of these apps, it's important that you do so under doctor supervision.
These apps are still not considered a medical device.
Doctors hope these tools can eventually be paired with medical records, so patients can be empowered by knowing more about their own health.