An artificial intelligence healthcare company claims its software can more accurately determine the extent of prostate cancer compared to traditional methods employed by doctors.
Avenda Health recently published findings from a study involving ten physicians, each evaluating 50 prostate cancer cases. The results showed that Avenda’s Unfold AI software identified cancer with an accuracy rate of 84.7%, while doctors manually assessing the cases had accuracy rates ranging from 67.2% to 75.9%.
Conducted in collaboration with UCLA Health and featured in the Journal of Urology, the study also highlighted that the integration of AI in cancer contouring led to predictions of tumor size that were 45 times more accurate and consistent than those made without AI assistance.
According to Shyam Natarajan, an assistant adjunct professor at UCLA and the senior author of the study, the inclusion of AI tools not only improved the accuracy of diagnoses but also enhanced consistency among doctors’ evaluations. “We observed that doctors were more likely to reach a consensus when AI was part of the process,” Natarajan stated.
Typically, doctors rely on MRI scans to evaluate tumor sizes; however, some tumors are not visible through these scans, as noted by Dr. Wayne Brisbane, an assistant professor of urology at UCLA’s David Geffen School of Medicine. He emphasized that AI technology can provide valuable insights in cases where MRI scans are insufficient.
Brisbane remarked, “Using AI in cancer treatment could pave the way for more effective and personalized patient care, with treatments tailored to individual needs and improved success rates in combating the disease.” He added that AI has the potential to exceed human capabilities in this context.
Avenda Health’s CEO, Dr. Shyam Natarajan, expressed confidence in the role of innovation, stating that it is encouraging for physicians to witness such advancements being validated through scientific research and acknowledged by the American Medical Association.
In the United States, approximately 1 in 8 men will face a prostate cancer diagnosis in their lifetime, and 1 in 44 men will succumb to the disease, according to the American Cancer Society. This year, it is projected that there will be 299,010 new prostate cancer cases in the US, with an estimated 35,250 fatalities resulting from the illness.