The HT Vista skin cancer screening device will be represented at this year’s BVNA Congress by the Animal Cancer Trust. The Animal Cancer Trust’s Chief Executive, Vicki Adams, will be available at stand P5 throughout the weekend to talk about the device, answer any questions and to book demos at delegate’s practices. In addition, Vicki is presenting a talk on the HT Vista’s role in approaching skin masses in dogs at 3.30pm on Sunday 8th October.
The Animal Cancer Trust is a charity that aims to support owners, vets and pets tackling cancer. Vicki explains, “the Animal Cancer Trust isn’t just here to support owners, but also to help the veterinary profession. We’re proud to be collaborating with HT Vista to present this new, reliable method of skin cancer screening and hope it will help veterinary teams and owners to detect and treat cancers more effectively.”
Skin tumours are the most common form of cancer diagnosed in dogs.[i] Accurately differentiating between benign and malignant tumours cannot be done solely on palpation. “In an ideal world,” says Vicki, “an FNA would be taken for all new masses. However, we know in practice this isn’t feasible. This is where HT Vista’s device comes in, bridging the gap between diagnosis based on palpation alone, and expensive further testing with often poor uptake. What’s more, it can be used by vet nurses – optimising the use of nurse clinics, freeing up vets’ time and moving practices towards a ‘whole team’ approach to working.”
Since launching in the UK in March this year, HT Vista’s device has been rapidly adopted by practices across the UK, including Highcroft Veterinary Referrals who boast an advanced oncology department. Liron Levy-Hirsch, Managing Director of HT Vista, says they’ve been “thrilled with how open veterinary teams have been to the benefits of this novel technology.” He continues, “we’re proud to be offering something completely new. We developed this product not to replace further investigations like FNAs but to work with vets to reliably determine where these more expensive tests are needed. With pet owners more concerned about costs than ever, this device can help practices to address owners’ cost concerns without risking delayed cancer diagnosis. We’re delighted to be collaborating with the Animal Cancer Trust to promote our device at this year’s BVNA Congress.”
HT Vista’s new point-of-care, handheld device represents a breakthrough in skin cancer screening for dogs. The device works by utilising Heat Diffusion Imaging and an artificial-intelligence based algorithm, and can be used to assess both dermal and subcutaneous growths. With 98% negative predictive value, the device is able to accurately screen skin masses to determine which masses are benign and which ones require further investigation. Vet nurses can triage all masses with the device, allowing the veterinary team to advise owners with confidence.
To find out more about the new device and its use in practice, visit stand number P5 at BVNA Congress from 6th-8th October 2023. Vicki Adams will also be presenting a talk on approaching skin masses at 3.30pm on Sunday 8th October, open to all BVNA Congress delegates. Further information on the new device is also available at HT Vista’s website. https://ht-vista.uk/
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