A new patch that mimics human skin could be the answer to healing chronic wounds that affect millions of patients worldwide every year.

Morteza Mahmoudi, a researcher in the department of anesthesiology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, invented the patch after growing up in Iran during the Iran-Iraq war. He witnessed people suffering from chronic war wounds every day, including his uncle, who died from complications caused by a chronic wound.

“This fueled my motivation to solve this complex issue,” said Mahmoudi.

Mahmoudi developed the patch for over 10 years. It mimics skin properties, removes bacteria, helps new cells grow and reduces inflammation. The patch is applied onto the wound like a bandage and stays on for two to eight weeks, depending on the severity of the wound. The patch can be easily applied by patients, and it becomes part of the skin.

“I would say that my only dream in medical science is to reduce the pain of patients,” Mahmoudi said.

The cost of the patch could be as low as $20, and it would reduce doctor visits, hospitalizations and amputations, he said.

Dr. Marie McDonnell, the director of the Brigham Diabetes program, treats patients with chronic diabetic sores every day and said the patch could be a “breakthrough.” McDonnell said that in diabetes patients, skin tissue is unable to keep up with the challenge of healing because of high blood sugar, damaged blood vessels and damaged nerves.

“It’s extremely stressful, and a lot of patients end up in rehab because the wound is not healing,” said McDonnell.

This is something that Susan Radovsky of Waltham knows all too well. She’s a patient at Brigham and Women’s who has struggled with Type 1 diabetes for 42 years and even had a toe amputated as a result of chronic wounds.

“It’s really nearly impossible — the dressing changes and the disappointment in seeing them not heal week to week,” said Radovsky, “It’s a 24/7 job just to keep myself going.” Radovsky said the patch could be a “game changer.”

Mahmoudi is in the running to win the Bright Futures Competition at Brigham and Women’s for his patch. The competition features projects with the potential to solve challenging medical problems, and the winner will be chosen Monday.

Mahmoudi said if he wins, he plans to use the prize money to develop clinical trials so he can get the patch to the market as soon as possible.