Adjunctive Diagnostic Methods for Skin Cancer Detection: A Review of Electrical Impedance‐Based Techniques

Abstract

Skin cancer is among the fastest‐growing cancers with an excellent prognosis, if detected early. However, the current method of diagnosis by visual inspection has several disadvantages such as overlapping tumor characteristics, subjectivity, low sensitivity, and specificity. Hence, several adjunctive diagnostic techniques such as thermal imaging, optical imaging, ultrasonography, tape stripping methods, and electrical impedance imaging are employed along with visual inspection to improve the diagnosis. Electrical impedance‐based skin cancer detection depends upon the variations in electrical impedance characteristics of the transformed cells. The information provided by this technique is fundamentally different from other adjunctive techniques and thus has good prospects. Depending on the stage, type, and location of skin cancer, various impedance‐based devices have been developed. These devices when used as an adjunct to visual methods have increased the sensitivity and specificity of skin cancer detection up to 100% and 87%, respectively, thus demonstrating their potential to minimize unnecessary biopsies. In this review, the authors track the advancements and progress made in this technique for the detection of skin cancer, focusing mainly on the advantages and limitations in the clinical setting. © 2022 Bioelectromagnetics Society.

Emerging trends and hot spots on electrical impedance tomography extrapulmonary applications

“…Thus, for women aged 30–45, choosing the low-priced EIT modalities for early diagnosis of breast cancer may relatively reduce radiation injury [ 36 ]. Equally, as an adjunct to visual approach, EIT has improved the specificity and sensitivity of skin cancer diagnosis to 87% and 100%, respectively, showing its capacity to minimize needless biopsies [ 37 ]. In the topic of prostate cancer, EIT imaging system has been coupled to standard ultrasound probes to guide biopsy to improve detection accuracy [ 25 ].…”

Integrated Sensors for Soft Medical Robotics

“…In the Cole-Cole model, cell membranes are characterized by the constant phase element (CPE), associated with the relaxation time constant 𝜏 and Cole parameter 𝛼; whereas biofluids are simplified in terms of resis-tance at two frequency extremes (infinite/high-frequency resistance R ∞ and low-frequency resistance R 0 ). BIS has been deployed in the detection and grading of many cancerous conditions both ex vivo and in vivo, including skin cancer, [126] breast cancer, [127] glioblastoma multiforme (brain tumor), [128] colorectal cancer, [129] and hepatic cancer. [130,131] Bipolar electrode configuration is a simple impedance characterization method where two electrodes are deployed to both excite and sense bio-tissues (Figure 6b).…”

Impact of Age and Sex on Electrical Impedance Values in Healthy Oral Mucosa

“…Nicander and co-workers [ 9 ] reported significantly different EI values between healthy skin and clinically unchanged skin in patients with atopic dermatitis. Apart from different inflammatory skin conditions, EI is mostly used as an adjunct in diagnostics of different benign and malignant skin tumours [ 10 , 11 , 12 ]. Apart from its use in dermatology, EI has been investigated as a diagnostic technique for the detection of breast cancer as well as a method for the assessment of lean muscle loss and cachexia [ 13 , 14 ].…”