The world’s first autonomous AI system for skin cancer detection, DERM, has received Class III CE marking in Europe, achieving 99.8% accuracy in ruling out cancer – surpassing dermatologists’ 98.9% – and slashing waiting times for critical assessments from months to days.
Skin cancer diagnostics face mounting pressure amid global dermatologist shortages, with European healthcare systems averaging just 30 specialists per million people.
European Medical Journal reports that in the UK alone, urgent referrals for skin cancer have risen by 170% over the past decade, while 11% of urgent cases wait more than a month for assessment.
British tech firm Skin Analytics has now pioneered DERM, an AI system now authorised to autonomously detect skin cancer without clinician oversight, marking a major leap in medical technology.
DERM’s approval under the EU’s stringent Medical Device Regulation (MDR) 2017/745 followed rigorous evaluation of its safety and efficacy. The system analyses skin lesions using AI trained on more than 110 000 real-world cases from UK deployments.
Clinical validation demonstrated a 99.8% accuracy rate in ruling out cancer, outperforming dermatologists (98.9%).
Real-world data show the technology reduces urgent appointment wait times from months to days by autonomously clearing low-risk cases.
In the UK, DERM has already assessed 110 000 patients, streamlining pathways and freeing specialists to prioritise complex cases.
Skin Analytics plans to expand DERM across Europe, while future priorities include adapting the technology for diverse populations and exploring applications in other dermatological conditions.
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