Breast cancer is the most frequent cancer among women, impacting 2.1 million women each year, and also causes the greatest number of cancer-related deaths among women. In 2018, it is estimated that 627,000 women died from breast cancer – that is approximately 15% of all cancer deaths among women. While breast cancer rates are higher among women in more developed regions, rates are increasing in nearly every region globally, mentions the WHO report.
Inspired by the same illness that his mother battled, a 19-year-old teen from Mexico has invented a high-tech bra that is likely to save women across the globe from breast cancer and will help in the early detection of the disease.
Julian Rios Cantu, the CEO and founder of Higia Technologies, has designed a bra and claims that it is equipped with technology that will act as a warning system for symptoms related to breast cancer.
In 2017, Julian was awarded Mexico’s Presidential Medal for Science and Technology. It has also been named one of “30 Most Promising Businesses of 2018” by Forbes Magazine Mexico. They have also received a $120,000 investment from Y Combinator.
Named EVA bra, the one of its kind product is incorporated with sensors used to collect thermal data from the surface of the breasts. The data is then utilized to map the thermal patterns of a patient’s breasts. According to the report, it is known to be “the first intelligent, portable, and non-invasive wearable designed to detect abnormalities in the thermal patterns of the breast, an indicator for the possible presence of breast cancer.”
The company report mentions that the sensibility of the EVA bra stands at 87.9%, while its specificity is at 81.7%. The study included data collected from 153 women with 33 of them having breast cancer confirmed through a mammogram or biopsy.
In an interview with TechCrunch, Julian says, “My mom is a two-time breast cancer survivor. The first time she was diagnosed I was eight years old.”
Previously the doctors did find a lump in her breasts and during his mother’s second diagnosis, it was revealed that they were cancerous and therefore bother her breasts were removed, but she has fully recovered now. It is during that time Julian realized how difficult it must be for women who are from developing countries of Mexico and doesn’t have life insurance and that not mastectomy but death is the only outcome from them.
“My mom could have had a better outcome if she had been diagnosed earlier, but because of the high density of her breasts, the X-ray missed the tumors,” he says.
The series of traumatic events inspired him to create a wonderful product for women across the world so that no one has to go through that similar pain again.
In the beginning, Julian spent a few months doing research to make sure that he is familiar with all the current advanced diagnostic practices. Therefore, he invented the idea to create a bra that will be able to detect the early signs of breast cancer.
To make it a reality, he filed a patent, got in touch with his friends to help him run the business and finally he designed the final product. Thanks to social media, pre-orders for this unique product have already begun on their official website.