KEY POINTS:
Doctors will soon be able to use an interactive online tool to predict how cancerous cells from melanoma will move throughout the body.
The tool, developed by a student at Auckland University's Maurice Wilkins Centre, allows doctors to select an area of skin affected by melanoma and then identify the most likely route cancerous cells will use to move through the body should melanoma spread beyond the skin.
The three-dimensional model uses data collected at the Sydney Melanoma Unit to predict where tumours may develop if the melanoma spreads so physicians can focus on those higher-risk areas.
Doctorate student Hayley Reynolds, based at the Bioengineering Institute at the university, created the tool.
"Melanoma is a potentially fatal disease, and is increasing in incidence with about 132,000 new cases diagnosed each year globally," Ms Reynolds said.
"By analysing data from over 5000 patients, we have mathematically calculated the routes melanoma cells can take around the body via the lymphatic system. By creating the 3D model, doctors can identify the lymph nodes where these cells are most likely to first appear and potentially stop the development of additional tumours at an early stage."
The research was funded by the Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, a New Zealand centre of research excellence hosted by Auckland University, with support from the Foundation for Research, Science and Technology and the Wellcome Trust.
- NZPA
