SciBase, a Swedish medtech company that develops and markets a new method for early detection of malignant melanoma, has received approval from the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) regarding its patent application for its electrodes with micro-needles.
The method is already approved in 12 European countries, Australia and Canada. All patents are valid through 2023.
SciBase’s solution Nevisense is based on a technology called Electrical Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS), which uses the varying electrical properties of human tissue to categorize cellular structures and thereby detect malignancies.
Malignant melanoma is a fast growing kind of skin cancer, which appears in the epidermis right under the cornified layer. Nevisense’s electrodes are equipped with microscopic needles that measure the electric impedance in the cells below, where malignant melanoma appears. The technique is essential for detecting the early stages of skin cancer.
"Right now, Nevisense is in the approval process for sales and marketing in the US, which is a future key market for us. The approval of our patent is thus an important step in our global expansion. Electrodes with micro-needles can potentially be used to detect other types of cancer as well," says Simon Grant, CEO of SciBase.
SciBase holds a total of 49 registered patents and currently have another 12 active patent applications pending in six patent families.
Skin cancer is the most common cancer in the world, accounting for nearly half of all cancers. It has been estimated that nearly half of all Americans who live to age 65 will develop skin cancer at least once.