Digital Oncology: Developing wearable nanofibre-based temperature sensors for early diagnosis of cancer

乳腺癌（BC）是全球女性死亡的主要原因之一[1]。根据WHO的数据，它是世界上最常见的诊断癌症，占2020年新发病例总数的12.5%（230万BC病例）和约685，000例死亡[2]。早期发现BC对提高患者的5年生存率至关重要，可达98% [3]。乳腺肿瘤的存在可以通过多种成像技术如乳腺X线摄影、超声和MRI来检测，但这些方法由于成本高且操作过程不舒适而不能作为个人监测设备。乳房X线摄影目前是乳腺癌初期筛查的金标准，但它也有一些缺点[4]：由于电离辐射，压迫患者乳房的必要性增加了患癌的风险。对于乳房组织致密或乳房植入体的女性，结果可能不太准确。乳房皮肤温度与乳腺癌之间存在相关性，并且是可测量的[5]。这促使了热成像技术的发展，热成像技术现在被用作一种额外的模式，具有很高的早期BC检测潜力。它使用红外摄像机来检测身体组织中的热模式和血流[6]。非侵入性，无辐射和无痛。检测具有致密组织和植入物的乳房的变化。熟练的医疗专业人员必须在医院或热成像中心进行筛查，因此即使该技术已被证明是一种可能的补充工具，本研究的目的是基于红外热成像的原理和机理，开发一种低成本、实时、灵活、透气的可穿戴贴片，用于连续温度监测，以实现早期乳腺癌的检测。它将包括：一个基于纳米纤维的可穿戴贴片，包含温度传感器。一个蓝牙接口电路，用于贴片将温度数据传输到移动的应用程序。一个移动的应用程序，用于显示来自可穿戴贴片的温度数据，以增强用户体验。该设备将有效地用作监测乳房健康的PHD，以：改善乳腺X线检查间隔之间快速生长肿瘤的检测，以及当乳腺X线检查不适用于50岁以下女性的筛查指南时。提醒用户可能需要进一步调查的变化。可穿戴贴片应该能够识别随着时间的推移乳房热量模式的特定特征，以检测BC：A。左右乳房之间的温度分布高度不对称。局部热点指示乳晕和乳晕周围区域中热模式的异常和变化。2方法学第一阶段，可穿戴贴片的制造：使用静电纺丝工具制造纳米网基层。制造有源传感层。比较分析：使用现有的红外热成像相机来验证从新开发的贴片获得的结果。2第二阶段，传感器接口电路：使用现成的Arduino电路，并配备蓝牙发射器，将实时温度传感数据传输到手机进行远程监控。第三阶段，移动的应用：开发一个与iOS和Android兼容的应用程序，从补丁中读取温度数据。测试整个系统：在死动物皮肤上测试所开发的贴片，以优化顺应性和粘附性能。设计嵌入加热器的乳房体模，以模仿女性乳房，分别对肿瘤进行体外试验，并对全系统进行体内试验。

Breast cancer (BC) is one of the leading causes of death in women worldwide [1]. According to WHO,it is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in the world contributing to 12.5% of the total number ofnew cases (2.3 million BC cases) and about 685,000 deaths in 2020 [2]. Early detection of BC is vital toimprove the 5-year survival rate of the patient for up to 98% [3]. The existence of breast tumors canbe detected using a variety of imaging techniques such as mammography, ultrasound, and MRI.However, these methods are impractical to be used as personal monitoring devices due to their highcost and uncomfortable procedures for the patient. Mammography is currently the gold-standardscreening method for BC at its initial stage, however, it has a number of drawbacks [4]:the necessity of compressing the patient's breasts increased cancer risks due to ionizing radiation exposureresults may be less accurate for women with dense breast tissue or breast implants.There is a correlation between breast skin temperature and cancerous breasts, and it is measurable[5]. This has prompted the development of thermography which is now used as an additional modalitywith a high potential for early BC detection. It uses an infrared camera to detect heat patterns andblood flow in body tissues [6].Non-invasive, radiation-free & painless.Detects changes in breasts with dense tissue and implants.A skilled medical professional must perform the screening in a hospital or thermography centre,therefore even though the technology has been proven to be a possible complementary tool, it isimpractical to use as a personal healthcare device (PHD).The goal of this research is to develop a low-cost, real-time, flexible, and breathable wearable patchfor continuous temp monitoring for early BC detection based on the theory and mechanism ofthermography. It will consist of:A nanofiber-based wearable patch containing temp sensors.A Bluetooth interface circuit for the patch to transmit the temp data to a mobile application.A mobile application to display temp data from the wearable patch for an enhanced userexperience.This device will effectively serve as a PHD that monitors breast health to:Improve detection of fast-growing tumors between mammogram intervals and whenmammography is not indicated by screening guidelines for women under 50.Alert the user to changes that may need further investigation.Reduce healthcare cost burden, barriers to health services, and user anxiety.The wearable patch should be able to identify specific features of breast heat patterns over time todetect BC:A. highly asymmetric temperature distributions between the left & right breastsB. localised hot spots indicating anomalies & variations in heat patterns in the areolar andperiareolar regions.2Methodology1st Phase, Fabrication of Wearable Patch:Fabricate the nanomesh base layer using the electrospinning tool.Fabricate the active sensing layer.Comparative analysis: use an existing infrared thermal imaging camera to verify the result obtainedfrom the newly developed patch.2nd Phase, Sensor Interface Circuit: use an off-the-shelf Arduino circuit and equip it with a Bluetoothtransmitter to deliver real-time temp-sensing data to cell phones for remote monitoring.3rd phase, Mobile Application: develop an app that is compatible with both iOS & Android to readtemp data from the patch.Testing the Full System:Testing of the developed patch on dead animal skin to optimize the conformability & adhesionproperties.Design a breast phantom embedded with a heater to mimic a woman's breast & tumorrespectively and use it to test the patch in-vitro.In-vivo test of the full system.