It seems that AI is working to help people if programmed the right way. Check out the latest breakthrough in medicine using AI for detecting cancer.
Artificial Intelligence working to detect cancer in people
Significant developments have been made in the fight against cancer with the advancements in technology. However, researchers from Yokohama, Japan have made a groundbreaking discovery in cancer research.
They have developed an Artificial Intelligence system that has the potential to detect colorectal cancer even before benign tumors become malignant.
The AI system works by examining a colorectal polyp magnified by 500 times to observe any variations. The program then cross-references these variations against a database of over 30,000 images of pre-cancerous and cancerous cells that were used to train the machine-learning program.
With all of this knowledge, AI has been able to detect cancer in less than a second, which is a significant improvement.
This is the first time an AI has been used for this specific purpose with this level of training, and the results are impressive, with an accuracy rate of 86% in matching results.
“Overall, 306 polyps were assessed real-time by using the AI-assisted system, providing a sensitivity of 94 percent specificity of 79 percent, accuracy of 86 percent, and positive and negative predictive values of 79 percent and 93 percent respectively, in identifying neoplastic changes.”
The study presented at the United European Gastroenterology Conference in Barcelona highlights the significant advancements Artificial Intelligence (AI) has brought to the medical field.
The lead behind this project is Dr. Yuichi Mori, who hails from Showa University in Japan. It’s important to note that colorectal cancer is the second deadliest form of cancer, after lung cancer.
The reason for this is that in later stages, cancerous cells can exit the thin tissue of the colon, rectum, and intestine, and enter directly into the bloodstream, making it spread much faster.
“We believe these results are acceptable for clinical application and our immediate goal is to obtain regulatory approval for the diagnostic system,” he said in a statement to Inverse.
It is important to note the fact that this study has the potential to increase survival rates even further. The sooner it’s used to perfect the AI’s capabilities, the better.
