Lumicure claims to be making progress in using OLEDs to treat skin cancer

The folks at Lumicure have been talking up OLEDs as a potential tool to treat skin cancer for a few years now and, while they still don't exactly have a whole lot to show for themselves, they're now claiming that they're making "excellent progress," and that they actually hope to have a product on the market by the fourth quarter of 2009. That progress is apparently due in large part to the $5 million in funding they received earlier this year although, again, they don't seem to be saying how that money is being put to use. The basic technology, first shown off more than two years ago, consists of a band-aid-type device that's connected to a battery, which lets the patient wear the device all day long, and is apparently more cost-effective and less painful than other methods of treatment. Apparently, the company is so pleased with its progress that it's already starting to focus on its next target: acne.

[Via OLED-Info.com, image courtesy LEDs Magazine]

[chris @ Dec 19th 2008 2:59PM]

i'm skeptical. let's see the results of the experiments.

[pavlindrom @ Dec 19th 2008 3:13PM]

I, on the other hand, am hoping that it's true.

[n_shakuras @ Dec 19th 2008 3:34PM]

Yeah, I don't trust any product that already has "cure" in the name. This smells strongly of snake oil.

[morcheeba @ Dec 19th 2008 8:37PM]

This works only in combination with drugs that are light-sensitive. The simple explanation is that these drugs are targeted to work only at the site of the tumor, and not to destroy other tissue (which is a big problem with most cancer therapies). So, it's not light alone doing the work.

[tekd @ Dec 19th 2008 11:44PM]

I'm rather skeptical, not even of whether it works, but of the point.
Because skin cancer currently has a 98%+ cure rate if you catch it before it's spread to other parts of your body. Essentially you just cut it out, and you're done.
So the problem is mostly that it doesn't get detected in time, not that it's not curable. And if I found out I had skin cancer I'd much rather go with the cure that already has a 98%+ cure rate than try some wacky new OLED product that'll try to kill the cancer cells.
Even if it actually does kill cancer cells, leaving the cancer cells sitting around while you shine lights on it rather obviously boosts the chances of the cancer metastasizing. Maybe it could be useful in shining on the skin AFTER you've cut out most of the cancer to make sure there aren't any cells left behind, but this doesn't make a lot of sense if you have a fast growing tumor that can metastasize at any moment.
And obviously it's completely and utterly useless against any skin cancer that's metastasized.

[DirtyVegas @ Dec 19th 2008 3:00PM]

You know, when all the OLED hype was going on, I said to myself "at this rate they'll claim it cures cancer". AIDS, next?

[BigD145 @ Dec 19th 2008 3:04PM]

Only skin cancer... maybe. You can't really wrap one of these around your heart, lungs, uterus, or prostate.

[bill cant fart @ Dec 19th 2008 3:07PM]

Speak for yourself...

[sloan2s @ Dec 19th 2008 7:04PM]

They already found the cure for aids, its $187,000

[BigD145 @ Dec 19th 2008 3:03PM]

They have a prototype that lights up. That's "excellent progress." Does it work? That's a different type of progress yet to be seen. 22 patients is not enough.

[Jason @ Dec 19th 2008 3:04PM]

I agree! More people should get cancer!

[Johan S @ Dec 19th 2008 3:16PM]

Actually they almost have it working for acne. The problem they're seeing is that if you have blue acne, it comes back after a while.

[StickMaker @ Dec 19th 2008 3:20PM]

Terrific news; don't kid yourself; skin cancer is serious business; if you don't believe me and have a strong stomach, you can see it on my page: http://www.sticksite.com/cancer/

[Juster @ Dec 19th 2008 3:44PM]

Best of luck with the treatment. Cancer is horrible but technology may save us yet, hopefully.

[vvtopkar @ Dec 19th 2008 3:43PM]

Is anyone else thinking Epic WIN!?

[HyperHacker @ Dec 19th 2008 7:50PM]

It's a bit early for that. Let's see it actually cure a few people first.

[kcandiloro @ Dec 19th 2008 4:02PM]

The post mentions plans to treat acne with OLED devices. Acne is caused by bacteria. One method of sterilization (killing bacteria) is with UV light, so I would assume that the device employs a UV OLED. What causes skin cancer? Overexposure to UV light. The product cycle is complete!

[qchronod @ Dec 19th 2008 4:04PM]

First thing that I thought after reading this:
Isn't skin cancer caused by spending too much time in the sun? How will more like make it go away?

[Seung-Hwan @ Dec 19th 2008 4:43PM]

Last time I checked, the proper sources to go for medical research is either a repository like pubmed/web of science or journals themselves, not OLED-info.com.

Yeah, I'm sure they're going to be really unbiased about the promise of OLED curing cancer... right.

[StickMaker @ Dec 19th 2008 5:19PM]

One more thing I should have mentioned: I read in the Readers Digest about a new "lotion" that is like magic on (some) skin cancer. It is expensive but it seems to WORK! It is called ALDARA. I've used it on one area and it seems to have cured it 100%.

[Ogo @ Dec 19th 2008 7:20PM]

I am pretty sure the OLED is a miniature TV that plays Paris Hilton movies which in turn causes the cancer to commit suicide.