EXCLUSIVE: A mother who dismissed a red mark on her thigh as an insect bite was diagnosed with deadly melanoma after groundbreaking NHS AI technology flagged it as cancer – with experts saying the software could slash waiting times and save lives
When Lindsey Scott noticed a small red patch on her thigh after a string of insect bites last summer, skin cancer was the furthest thing from her mind.
“It was flat and itchy,” the 68-year-old from Fulham recalls. “I’d been bitten in a couple of places and they all looked similar at first, so I assumed it was just another bite.”
Like most people, she expected it to fade within a few days. Instead, weeks passed and while her other bites faded, a stubborn red patch remained. “I thought I’d just keep an eye on it,” she says. “I didn’t want to waste the GP’s time.”
It was August 2024, and Lindsey had a long-awaited holiday to the US fast approaching. Fitting in a doctor’s appointment before she left felt like “too much faff”, so she put it off, opting to take photos every few days instead.
“I realised it was gradually getting bigger,” she says. “As soon as I got back from holiday, I phoned the GP and they gave me an appointment straight away.”
After examining the lesion, her GP referred Lindsey to an NHS skin cancer pathway that uses an artificial intelligence system developed by tech company Skin Analytics. Instead of relying solely on traditional referrals, Lindsey’s case was assessed using DERM – a software system capable of analysing photographs of skin lesions and identifying those most likely to be cancerous.
Within weeks, she was at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, where medical photographers captured high-resolution images of the mark. At the time, Lindsey didn’t fully realise AI was playing such a significant role in her care.
“The hospital explained that they were using this new technology alongside dermatologists,” she says. “I was perfectly comfortable with that. If anything, I thought it removed some of the subjectivity. AI doesn’t have any bias about your age or gender.”
The technology immediately flagged the lesion as suspicious and Lindsey was able to bypass seeing a dermatologist, instead going straight to surgery where doctors removed it during a biopsy.
It was only afterwards at her follow-up appointment, did she learn the true nature of her ‘insect bite’.
“It was then they told me it was malignant melanoma,” she says. “It sounds frightening, but because they’d already removed it, I actually felt relieved. The problem had already gone.”
As a standard precaution, doctors later carried out a second procedure to remove additional surrounding tissue, ensuring no stray cancerous cells had been cleared.
She has now in remission, and attends annual check-ups. Looking back, Lindsey she acknowledges how easily a delay could have changed her outcome
“It probably would have been sensible [to go earlier],” she admits. “But life gets in the way. You have plans, you don’t want to let people down, and it’s easy to convince yourself it’s probably nothing.”
It’s exactly the kind of delay doctors worry about. Skin cancer rates continue to rise across the UK. Melanoma accounts for the majority of skin cancer deaths, yet it remains highly treatable when caught early.
Yet many patients dismiss suspicious marks as harmless moles, insect bites or minor skin irritations until they become impossible to ignore. Now, this new AI software could be rolled out across the whole NHS, allowing patients to take photos without the need to see a dermatologist.
Traditionally, patients referred with suspicious skin lesions wait for photographs to be reviewed by consultant dermatologists before being offered further appointments.
Artificial intelligence has the potential to dramatically speed up that process. Skin Analytics has now launched DERM Zero, a new version of its NHS-tested technology capable of delivering a clinical-grade skin cancer assessment using nothing more than a standard smartphone.
The software has already been used across 24 NHS hospitals, assessing more than 230,000 patients and identifying over 20,000 cancers.
Neil Daly, founder of Skin Analytics, believes the technology could fundamentally change how patients enter the healthcare system.
Instead of booking a GP appointment before joining a lengthy referral pathway, patients could eventually photograph a suspicious mole or lesion using their smartphone and receive a dermatologist-quality assessment almost immediately.
“If we identify something suspicious, we can route patients directly into the hospital pathway,” he explains.
“Or, if it’s a harmless lesion, they can be safely discharged without needing to take up a specialist appointment.”
The technology has demonstrated the ability to detect around 98 percent of skin cancers, performance comparable with consultant dermatologists.
Rather than replacing doctors, Neil says the aim is to ensure specialists spend their time treating patients who genuinely need urgent care.
“The NHS is under enormous pressure,” he says. “When people avoid seeking help because they’re worried about waiting times, that’s when cancers get missed. And when cancers are missed, people die.
“Our whole reason for existing is to use technology to dramatically increase access to specialist assessment.”
While the technology is currently integrated into NHS services rather than available as a downloadable app, Neil believes it could eventually sit behind platforms such as the NHS App, allowing patients to access assessments from home while remaining connected to NHS treatment if further investigation is needed.
Lindsey says her experience has left her convinced that artificial intelligence could play a major role in encouraging people to come forward earlier.
“For me, the AI process freed up appointments in the hospital because it screened out people who didn’t need to be seen urgently. That meant I could get through the system much more quickly.
“If this encourages people to get checked sooner, that’s a really good thing.”
