Finite element skin models as additional data for dynamic infrared thermography on skin lesions

Skin cancer is a significant global health concern, with increasing incidence rates and a high number of deaths each year. Early detection plays a crucial role in improving survival rates, but current screening methods, such as total body skin examination, often lead to unnecessary invasive excisions. This research aims to explore the use of dynamic infrared thermography (DIRT) in combination with other technologies to potentially eliminate the need for biopsies in the future and gather information about the stage or depth of malignant skin lesions. The study involves data acquisition using a thermal camera and a finite element skin model. The FEM skin model employed in this research follows the commonly used five-layer model and is constructed in Siemens Simcenter 3D to be able to simulate the cryogenic cooling on the skin. It is possible to improve the thermal images by choosing an appropriate cooling method, cooling sequence and optimised measurement setup. While the FEM skin model shares certain similarities with the measurement data, there is room for further enhancements to optimise its performance. The acquired data is analysed to assess the effectiveness of the combined technique compared to existing clinical and diagnostic methods.