An AI healthcare firm claims that its software can more accurately identify the extent of prostate cancer compared to human doctors.
Avenda Health recently conducted a study with ten physicians who evaluated 50 different prostate cancer cases each. The company’s Unfold AI software achieved an accuracy rate of 84.7% in detecting cancer, while the doctors’ manual assessments ranged from 67.2% to 75.9%.
The research, carried out in collaboration with UCLA Health and published in the Journal of Urology, also revealed that AI-assisted cancer contouring led to size predictions being 45 times more accurate and consistent than those made without AI.
Shyam Natarajan, an assistant adjunct professor of urology, surgery, and bioengineering at UCLA and the study’s senior author, noted that AI assistance improved both the accuracy and consistency of the doctors’ assessments, resulting in greater consensus among them.
Traditionally, doctors utilize MRIs to gauge tumor size; however, some tumors are undetectable by this method. Dr. Wayne Brisbane, an assistant professor of urology at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, emphasized that AI fills in the gaps where MRIs fall short, enhancing diagnostic capabilities.
Brisbane stated that the integration of AI in cancer treatment could facilitate more effective and personalized care for patients, ultimately leading to bespoke treatments that better address individual needs and improve outcomes against the disease. He pointed out that AI can surpass human capabilities in this area.
Dr. Shyam Natarajan, CEO of Avenda Health, expressed that it is empowering for doctors to see such innovations validated through research and recognized by the American Medical Association.
According to the American Cancer Society, approximately 1 in 8 men in the US will receive a prostate cancer diagnosis in their lifetime, and about 1 in 44 will succumb to the disease. It is projected that there will be 299,010 new cases of prostate cancer in the US this year, resulting in an estimated 35,250 deaths.