Early Detection of Skin Cancer with First Derm: Life-Saving Online Screening Program

Online Skin Cancer Screening: Campaign Overview

Highlighting the utmost importance of early detection of skin cancer, Charles SLBG foundation together with First Derm launched a free skin cancer screening campaign, from February 2022 to August 2024.

The project provided free online access to more than 3000 individuals based in the United Kingdom, to consult board-certified dermatologists regarding their skin concerns. Campaign gained remarkable success by identifying 43 cases of melanoma, and potentially saving £205,400.

Spot the signs of skin cancer early with online screenings.

How the Campaign Worked

First Derm provides easy access for anyone with skin concerns to reach out to a board-certified dermatologist through its user-friendly online platform.

Process:

• Users can submit a photo of their skin concern along with a brief description, including their age, medical history, and characteristics of the skin lesion.
• Within a matter of 24 hours, they can obtain an accurate expert opinion on the matter and instructions on what to do next.

Find out how online skin cancer screening works and what to expect.

Key Results and Impact

Potential case of malignant melanoma on the neck identified during an online skin cancer screening, showing irregular shape and color variations

The free service was utilised by over 3000 individuals, mostly comprising of young people aged 20 to 29 years.

• Early identification of 43 cases of melanomas prompted these individuals to seek further medical care urgently, potentially saving their lives.
• Additionally, over 1,200 unnecessary consultations were prevented by directly providing tailored recommendations to individuals via the First Derm platform.

Learn more about who is at risk for skin cancer.

Healthcare Cost Reduction

An additional benefit of the project was the potential healthcare cost reduction, lightening the economic strain of healthcare resources.

A total of £50,000 funds raised by the Charles SLBG Foundation was allocated to the project:

• Consultations: £31,000
• Advertising: £19,000

This initiative provided free access for more than 3,000 people to connect with dermatologists. Both prevention of unnecessary consultations and early diagnosis could have helped reduce the NHS healthcare cost by a significant amount. Only considering early detection of melanoma at an early stage, the sum would be £205,400 (according to our online research, the cost to treat a case of melanoma in the UK is estimated to be around £2 600 per case, these are figures from 2013 by the Department of Health).

Key Insights

The 30-month-long project, executed through the collaboration between the Charles SLBG Foundation and the First Derm platform, has been a success. It provided a free and reliable platform for dermatologist consultations. The project potentially saved lives, reduced healthcare costs, and raised awareness about skin cancer among the public, particularly young men, as demonstrated in this project.

About The Charles SLBG Foundation and First Derm

The Charles SLBG Foundation

The Charles SLBG foundation is a charity foundation established in remembrance of Charles, who succumbed to stage 4 metastatic melanoma in 2011 at a very young age. One of the major aims of the organization is to raise awareness of skin cancer and prevent untimely demises by early diagnosis and treatment. In their attempt to bring this concept to reality, they collaborated with the most convenient practical solutions with First Derm.

First Derm

Our platform enables users to conveniently upload photos of their skin concerns and receive an expert response within hours, empowering them to take control of their health from the comfort of home.

Learn how First Derm’s triage tool aids in the early detection of skin cancer

Read the Full Report

Download the pdf >> Online Dermatology Skin Cancer Screening campaign 2022-2024.