CHECKKIT

What it does

CHECKKIT allows users to understand what to look for during self-examination, as lack of understanding demotivates people to self-examine.

Your inspiration

In 2015 my life changed dramatically as a result of a family member passing away from breast cancer. Throughout time, I noticed people’s reactions to this problem. The subject of cancer is avoided and is unspoken which seems to only make the problem more prominent. As discovered, cancer survivors and patients can feel exceptionally lonely due to the lack of awareness and fear of discussing the illness. That has inspired me to look deeper into the subject to address this problem. After conducting interviews, I was surprised to discover how little people know about breast cancer and the self-examination process.

How it works

The kit provides 3 models that will simulate the breast and the physical symptoms of breast cancer. The first model will contain a replication of a tumour and could be compared to the second model simulating the cyst. The third model will indicate the thickening of the skin around the breast as it is another physical symptom of breast cancer. The outer layer of the breast models will be made out of addition cure silicone material. The chosen silicone properties were selected due to flexibility and the material being able to replicate the texture of the skin. The tumour and the back plate will be made out of Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) to replicate the stiffness. As well as the physical models, the kit comes with a brochure to explain how to properly conduct a self-examination and the overall twelve symptoms of breast cancer. A notebook will also be included to write down your monthly logs.

Design process

Since early development, I was in close contact with nurses and doctors which helped me understand what direction to pursue. As breasts are sexualised, I have gone through multiple concepts to try to eliminate the sexuality from the final concept. Originally my designs included colour and were spherical, however, after finding out that breast tumours are mostly on the top half of the breast, I have designed it to be in the shape of a droplet. The colour was chosen to be white to not distract the users, creating an elegant and desirable product. I have gone through multiple prototypes due to the silicone being really hard to manipulate. Having to manually create a layer of skin out of silicone, fill it in with gel and additional components was a very tedious job, however, when manufacturing using injection moulding it will not be a problem. Working in a boarding school has made me realise how little we are taught in schools about cancer, it was extremely important to me to make sure the students interacted with the product accordingly and felt like this could become part of the curriculum. The packaging was created with the aim of achieving a sophisticated look to ensure the users feel comfortable having the kit in their homes.

How it is different

It is the only kit available that tries to replicate healthy tissue as well as the tumour to make sure the user knows the difference. When assessing the competition, it has been noted that all the available breast models look very lifelike and make the users uncomfortable, so another unique part of my design is that it eliminates all the "embarrassing" features and creates a simple yet elegant design.

Future plans

I am looking into developing a patent for my product and then fully commercialising it in the near future. The first step will be creating the kit for nurses to encourage women to self examine and then further develop it into an education kit for schools. I hope to expand into making a kit for male cancers such as testicular cancer.

Awards

Overall winner Design in Innovation Plastics (DIP) competition 2019