We demonstrated that malignant pigmented lesions with increased metabolic activity generate quantifiable amounts of heat and the measurement of the transient thermal response of the skin to a cooling excitation allows quantitative identification of melanoma and other skin cancers (vs. non-proliferative nevi) at an early stage of the disease.
Herman, C., Pirtini Cetingul, M. Quantitative Visualization and Detection of Skin Cancer Using Dynamic Thermal Imaging. J. Vis. Exp. (51), e2679, doi:10.3791/2679 (2011).