Smart Bra That Detects Breast Cancer

We all know of the importance of yearly breast screenings to prevent breast cancer, however, not all women get them, even though they know the importance of doing so. Fortunately, there is good news for women in the form of the First Warning System, a smart bra which will detect breast cancer before it is even detectable by a normal mammogram. A Nevada company is developing a BSE (Breast Self Exam) bra with sensors integrated into the cups of the bra.

The bra works through its sensors embedded into it which measures the temperature of the breast cells and then analyzes that data with specialized software. While this method cannot fully replace mammograms 100% of the time it can detect tumors in women more than 90% of the time and thus lead to earlier treatment and better results. This should make it easy for a woman to get regular screenings without the need to visit the doctor’s office by simply wearing the bra a few times a week.

The smart bra is still in the early clinical trial stage but more trials will follow and, if the bra continues to show success, it could reach the commercial market in Europe by 2013 and in America by 2014 for a cost of around US$1,000. 

Technology is really making an impact in the self diagnosis sector of the Health industry. Definite growth area for 2013, especially in the smartphone app space. 

Condoms By Subscription

Over the years we have seen various online businesses and startups moving to a subscription based service model as a differentiator in an existing and saturated market. From cotton tampons by Trinket, Coffee curated and delivered to your door by Kopi,  through to Panty By Post and Me Undies for underwear subscriptions just to name a few. This week we spotted a new entrant joining the subscription service model, Australia's condom brand Big Richard.

Based on a recent NSW Health report, they discovered that only 40.51% of people between the age of 20 to 29 always use condoms for safe sex. The 2 main reasons for non use appeared to be related to lack of immediate availability and the embarrassment factor when purchasing over the counter.

This has prompted Llyod Perry founder of Big Richard to launch a monthly condom subscription service. Starting from $10 a month, Big Richard will send you a selection of condoms and a sex toy to bring up the heat in the bedroom. The subscription has three options, a 'Shag' pack, 'Couples' pack and a 'Superman' pack.

Perfect example of taking a existing product and moulding it into a new business model to cater for a niche market channel. One to partner with or emulate in your corner of the globe.

Condom App

New York City has been distributing free condoms to residents and visitors since 1971. This year, that initiative meets an app.

The Department of Health want “New York City to be the safest city in the world to have sex”, says it’s assistant health commissioner Dr. Monica Sweeney. And this Valentine’s Day they made it a fair bit easier, or at least more convenient, to do so.

Having launched NYC’s own self branded ‘NYC Condoms’ in 2007, this new smartphone app initiative enables users to locate the five nearest locations dispensing said condoms using their phone’s GPS. Available for iPod, iPhone, iPad or Android, the app also has a browser based equivalent and a good old-fashioned telephone ordering system for any NYC-based organization, dial 311.

The app not only locates the nearest distribution points but also provides walking, driving and public transport directions through Google Maps integration. Hours of each venues operation, the type of safer sex products available there and a few tips on condom usage are also linked in.

With over 3000 venues distributing these condoms around NYC, over 15,000 followers on their NYC Condom Facebook page it seems this initiative has been a successful execution. One that keeps a little innovation going to take a good way.

“The NYC Condom Finder is a useful tool to ensure that New Yorkers have access to free condoms wherever they are in the city,” said Dr. Thomas Farley, NYC Health Commissioner. “We encourage New Yorkers to stay safe on Valentine’s Day – and everyday – by using condoms.”

Grab it on the iTunes store and at the Android market.

Pay Less Sweat More

A fitness program where you pay less if you exercise more. Gym-Pact is a program in Boston where for $10 a month you get unlimited use of affiliate gyms, dance centres, yoga studios and other fitness programs. But, if you miss a day you pay a $10 per missed day ‘motivational’ fee. But you needn’t go everyday, Gym-Pact has a selection of programs where you can commit to a minimum of one day a week and should you get injured along the way, a doctors note will suffice. Calling themselves ‘enforced fitness’, they keep tabs on members through a simple SMS system. Whenever you arrive at your fitness destination there will be a passcode for the day at the front desk. You SMS this code to the Gym-Pact designated number when you sign-in and when you sign-out. Started by a couple of Harvard graduates, Zhang Yifan and Geoff Oberhofer, the system is based off thoughts thrown around in Zhang’s behavioural economics classes. Zhang learnt how people are motivated more by immediate consequences than by future possibilities and applied that to the fitness business. An industry that has long relied upon front-up sunken investment. Zhang and Oberhofer see Gym-Pact as a social enterprise program. Currently still in development stage, they look to profit from this venture solely off referral fees and revenue sharing programs with affiliate gyms. Motivational fees all go towards operation costs of the Gym-Pact program and supporting individuals in financial need – so as the website says, they can “get fit too”. Behavioural economics getting people in shape.

Your DNA in the Mail

A swab of saliva and $199 is all 23 and Me needs to tell you whether you’ll go bald, whether you should avoid petunias, or what could potentially kill you. A DNA kit for the masses, 23 and Me send you a swab and a serial number. Once your swab has been processed, you go to their website and log on for a wealth of data. Your automatic year long subscription buys you analysis on your ancestry, in-depth knowledge of your health risks, and updates on new information of your DNA – as the technology advances. The team behind 23 and Me predict that you could connect to up to a 100 living relatives you never knew you had, learn where your long gone ancestors migrated from, see what conditions your potential child could inherit, and give you advice on how exactly you should look after your health. 23 and Me enable the individual to access the latest in genetic research. They bypass the traditional pathways – of waiting rooms, hospitals, drips and needles – to offer the consumer a wealth of accessible and engaging information on what’s important to many, themselves.

And it also enables the researchers. A team of physicians and scientists back the project, using information collated to power research in immediate ways previously il-logistical. Research ‘communities’ in Parkinsons, pregnancy and sarcoma enable people with these ‘conditions’ to participate in the 23 and Me program for free. Their genomes are sequenced, they access all their data, and contribute to research programs to boot. The interactivity and immediacy of the internet used to empower individuals on their genetic make up. Making a more well informed world through collation and distribution of  transformative information, very fast.