Integrating electronics for detection and diagnosis

Chronic, non-communicable diseases (heart, cancer, respiratory, diabetes, kidney, and liver diseases) are, collectively, a challenge of epidemic proportions. At a global scale, they will cost an estimated $47 trillion by 2030. Europe currently has the highest number of deaths and disability due to these diseases according to the World Health Organisation. Yet according to the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development), on average only 3% of total health expenditure goes to public prevention with some 97% of health expenses spent on treatment. Improved access to good quality air, water, food, and green space, and to sporting, recreational, and cultural facilities all contribute to reducing inequalities and creating sustainable communities. Improvement to housing conditions shows a number of positive effects on health, including lowering mortality rates while adequate heating systems improve asthma and reduce numbers of days off school in Europe. Yet early detection and diagnosis are called for too. There is a need to develop new tools to detect chronic disease in at-risk populations. An interesting item to emerge recently is the Verisante Aura, an implementation of raman spectroscopy that evaluates skin lesions clinically suspicious for cancer. Approved for sale in Canada, Europe, and Australia, it is not yet accepted in Mexico, Brazil, or the USA. But Verisante is now working on a Core series of products with the same platform technology for the early detection of lung, colon, and cervix cancers. Early detection is key to saving lives of melanoma patients and to saving on healthcare costs. A melanoma diagnosed and treated in the earliest stages results in a 99% survival rate and costs about $1,800 to treat. Detected and treated in later stages, survival rate drops to 15%; cost to treat soars to $170,000. Small wonder that, operating in healthcare, Maxim Integrated, has taken as one of its catch lines "Analog integration" the "new prescription for medicine." Diagnostics, monitoring, and therapy for healthcare it claims has simple math. Move point of care closer to patients, giving them the tools they need to care for themselves and that can reduce medical costs by 80%. Tele-medicine is achievable, provided the broadband facilities are present. New tele-health technologies allow patients to receive long-term care at home, reducing costs from $5000/day for hospital stays to around $10/day. Ultrasound is portable. To take guesswork out of diagnosis and treatment and bring such benefits as cardiology to villages without electricity, let alone broadband, means systems designers must take heavy and expensive equipment and make it both smaller and more affordable. As channel counts increase, in addition to space constraints, a new set of concerns arise as sensitive receive electronics are jostled by noisier digital electronics, and designers must search for ways to power all from fixed battery capacity. The answer it appears lies in integration. Power Systems Design