Development of a dual-modality, dual-view smartphone-based imaging system for oral cancer detection

Abstract

Oral cancer is a rising health issue in many low and middle income countries (LMIC). Proposed is an implementation of autofluorescence imaging (AFI) and white light imaging (WLI) on a smartphone platform providing inexpensive early detection of cancerous conditions in the oral cavity. Interchangeable modules allow both whole mouth imaging for an overview of the patients’ oral health and an intraoral imaging probe for localized information. Custom electronics synchronize image capture and external LED operation for the excitation of tissue fluorescence. A custom Android application captures images and an image processing algorithm provides likelihood estimates of cancerous conditions. Finally, all data can be uploaded to a cloud server where a convolutional neural network classifies the images and a remote specialist can provide diagnosis and triage instructions.