Do you remember when intelligent computers existed only in science-fiction films like Star Wars? Or when talking to machines sounded like something from Tomorrow’s World?
Today, that future has arrived. Anyone with a smart TV or smartphone can see how quickly technology is changing our lives.
Artificial Intelligence, or AI, now forms part of everyday life. Virtual assistants appear in many homes and devices. Tools such as Siri and Alexa can choose entertainment, dim the lights, adjust music or even switch on the heating before we get home.
These developments are exciting. Even more importantly, AI is beginning to play a major role in medicine — including lung cancer diagnosis.
AI and lung cancer detection
Researchers at the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford think they’ve found ways to use Artificial Intelligence that can look for nodules, the large clumps of cells that can be the very early signs of lung cancer.
Early detection remains critical. When doctors diagnose the disease at an early stage, patients have a much better chance of receiving curative treatment.
Helping patients and the NHS
There’s another great advantage to early diagnosis: it can save money.
The National Health Service faces significant financial pressure. When the NHS launched in 1948, the UK population stood just above 50 million. Today it approaches 66 million.
The NHS now serves far more people, and many patients live much longer than previous generations.
To meet these demands, the health service must fund new medicines, advanced equipment and additional facilities. It must also pay staff and support new treatments and services. As a result, the overall cost of running the NHS continues to rise.
Ironically, the more successful the NHS becomes at keeping people healthy, the more resources it requires.
How AI could save billions
The Oxford researchers believe their AI system could help address these challenges.
Their technology examines lung scans and identifies nodules. With traditional methods, doctors often struggle to determine whether these nodules are harmless.
As a precaution, many patients must return for repeated scans so doctors can monitor any changes. This process can increase costs for the NHS and create months of anxiety for patients.
Clinical trials suggest the AI system can identify harmless cases more accurately. This could reduce unnecessary follow-up scans and lower healthcare costs.
At the same time, the system can help doctors diagnose lung cancer much earlier.
From research to real-world use
The research team has launched a company called Optellum to explore the technology’s commercial potential.
The company’s chief science and technology officer, Dr Timor Kadir, believes the system could free up valuable NHS resources.
He suggests those resources could support wider lung cancer screening programmes. If that happens, more than 4,000 people each year could receive an earlier diagnosis.
That sounds like a win-win outcome. Smart technology in every sense!