In India, where breast cancer causes nearly 75,000 deaths per year—and where not every woman has access to annual mammograms, especially in rural areas—blind women can serve as Medical Tactical Examiners (MTEs) to help detect anomalies. German physician Dr. Frank Hoffman, founder of the program Discovering Hands, had the idea to train blind individuals because studies have been shown that the brains of blind people can develop a heightened sense of touch. After approximately 6 months of study and 9 months of internship, MTE’s are able identify lumps at the very initial stages—even before they show up on imaging scans; those in Dr. Hoffman’s program have showed a 30% better rate at detecting tissue changes than doctors. With several independent studies having corroborated the success of the approach, gynecologists remain hopeful that these support workers can add value to and take pressure off of health systems.
