Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a modern tool for the fight against diseases, through the prevention and improvement of diagnoses of diseases such as cancer.
The Harvard Gazette interviewed researcher and physician Tyler Berzin, who co-authored a study that showed how deep learning and AI can improve colon cancer screening accuracy.
The study by Berzin and colleagues was published by the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) under the title: Deep learning computer-assisted polyp detection reduces adenoma-missing rate: A randomized tandem colonoscopy study in multiple US centers
This study used AI to improve the results of colonoscopy, the most important tool in the fight against colon cancer, however, still insufficient for early detection. "Colonoscopy is the most effective tool to prevent colon cancer, but there is great variability among individual physicians in their ability to detect precancerous polyps," Berzin explained.
Variability is related to efficacy, and these tests require many professionals, patients, technicians, gastroenterologists. AI can help improve the performance of professionals, as Berzin explains: "Artificial intelligence could act as an additional pair of eyes, without distractions and without fatigue."
Polyps are very flat, according to the specialist, and are usually mixed with the surrounding mucosa. The AI technology sits between the colonoscope and the endoscopy monitor and processes the image, then the image is processed and transmitted to the monitor, where it alerts where suspicious polyps can be located.
Polyps are recognized by a deep learning-based computer vision algorithm. which is also designed to learn to detect certain objects when it has enough information. This has achieved an improvement of 30% in the detection of precancerous polyps.
Finally, Berzin explains about the current processes of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the US “The FDA has just approved the first AI system for the detection of polyps, and it is beginning to be implemented in a handful of centers across the country.”
