Patent ID: 8642009

Claim:
A non-invasive method for analysis of a skin lesion of an individual for the presence of a melanoma having a Breslow thickness of less than one millimeter, the method comprising: topically contacting a region of skin of the individual comprising the skin lesion with a formulation comprising an effective concentration of an RGD peptide comprising a detectable label, which peptide specifically binds to an integrin, wherein the peptide is provided in a topical formulation containing a skin penetration enhancer selected from the group consisting of a sulphoxide, azone, pyrrolidone, alcohol, glycol, surfactant, and terpene; incubating the formulation on the region of skin for a period of time sufficient for transdermal penetration of the peptide and localization of the peptide to a region of the skin lesion if the integrin is present; illuminating the region of skin with light at a wavelength appropriate for image acquisition; generating an image of localization of the peptide in the region of skin; wherein localization of the peptide to the region of the skin lesion is indicative of melanoma.