Can AI Help In The Early Detection Of Cancer?

Cancer is a heavy word that brings with it unimaginable pain, suffering and heartache. Almost every person knows of someone who has been affected, whether a friend, family member or work colleague. And despite decades of medical advancements and progress, it still remains one of the leading causes of death globally.

According to Cancer Research UK, one in two people will be diagnosed with some form of cancer in their lifetime. And every year, around 375,000 new cases are reported. That’s about 1000 people diagnosed every day which paints a rather sobering picture, doesn’t it?

To stand a fighting chance, early detection is critical. It can drastically improve survival rates with treatments being more effective and less invasive. The tricky thing is, cancer is notoriously difficult to catch early. How can you detect something that, in its earliest stages, have vague or almost non-existent symptoms?

Artificial intelligence. With its already extensive and impressive capabilities, could early cancer detection be added to its list?

 

Is AI Already Being Used In Healthcare?

 

AI is no stranger to the healthcare industry and has already been used for designing new medicine and diagnostics. X-rays and scans are analysed to identify issues while patterns are spotted in blood tests and biopsies.

These AI systems are like human intelligence but much quicker and more precise, reducing the time it takes to correctly diagnose diseases and find suitable treatment plans.

The UK is actually at the forefront of integrating AI with cancer detection. Back in 2019, the NHS AI Lab was launched to fund projects centred around using AI for finding cancers early. Since then, the National Pathology Imaging Co-operative (NPIC), based in Leeds, has been actively developing AI tools to assist cancer diagnostics in NHS hospitals.

AI is already front and centre for supporting mental health and predicting heart conditions but in cases where time is crucial, like the early detection of cancer, it could be a glimmer of hope for future patients.

 

How AI Can Help With Early Cancer Detection

 

From radiology to pathology and risk profiling, AI can be used in almost every step of the detection journey to identify cancers early. As these machines continue to learn and develop, early detection is predicted to become even more advanced, giving cancer patients a real shot at beating the disease entirely.

 

Medical Imaging

 

In cancer detection, AI is mostly used to study medical imaging and currently, this is where it’s the most advanced. AI algorithms are trained on hundreds of thousands of scans to be able to find abnormalities much earlier and quicker than a human radiologist could.

Breast cancer is one of the most common types of cancer, affecting one in eight women. Recent studies have shown that AI tools are able to study mammograms and produce the same diagnosis as radiologists.

In fact, the NHS is already testing the use of AI in UK imaging departments to improve accuracy and help clear the backlogs of scans that need to be looked at.

 

 

Pathology

 

In the past, pathologists had to manually study cells from a biopsy in order to be able to accurately diagnose the type and stage of cancer present. Naturally, this is a very tedious and time-consuming task with the possibility of human error always being a factor.

But now, AI is being trained to do the same thing with unmatched precision and speed. It can even pick up the most subtle of changes that the human eye might miss.

 

Profiling High-Risk Patients

 

AI is doing more than just finding cancer, it can predict who is most at risk. These systems can accurately scan health records, genetics, family history and lifestyle habits to see which individuals are more likely to develop certain types of cancers.

Of course, it’s not guaranteed that the patient will actually develop that cancer. It’s more of a preventative measure to help doctors with screening before symptoms actually manifest down the line.

If someone has a long history of lung cancer in their family, they could be tested more regularly in an effort to catch any abnormalities early.

 

Are There Any Limitations With Using AI For Early Detection?

 

As we already know, as powerful as AI is, it doesn’t come without its fair share of limitations. While using it for the early detection of cancers could completely change the future of healthcare and diagnostics, it’s not all smooth sailing.

AI is trained on data so if any of it is flawed or inaccurate, that’s what the AI will reflect. It’s also not always clear to medical professionals how AI models come to the conclusions that they do. This would be rather concerning in urgent medical cases where the right call needs to be made.

The biggest issue surrounding using AI for cancer detection is regulation and ethics. If AI were to make the wrong diagnosis or the wrong call, who should take the fall? And using AI means it has access to patient files which raises the concern of data privacy.

But the thing is, cancer doesn’t wait. If AI is already proving to be a strong ally in the early stages for doctors, it has the potential to make major medical breakthroughs.