A new study is set to investigate how artificial intelligence can significantly improve doctors’ decisions about prostate cancer treatment.
While diagnostic methods for this disease have become safer and more accurate, medical professionals still face significant challenges in accurately assessing its aggressiveness in individual patients.
This problem can lead some men to undergo invasive procedures such as surgery or radiotherapy, when a less invasive surveillance approach may be more appropriate.
The vital Pathway Study, led by researchers at the University of Oxford, is being funded by a £1.9m grant from Prostate Cancer UK to tackle this vital issue.
Experts will first test the technology — called the ArteraAI Prostate Biopsy Assay — on prostate biopsy samples from men who have already been diagnosed and treated for the disease and have at least five years of follow-up data.
In this study, the predictions made by the AI tool are compared to what happened to patients in the real world.
It will then be tested in real clinics on biopsies from diagnosed men, focusing on cases where doctors find it difficult to decide the best course of treatment.
The three participating NHS organizations are: North Bristol NHS Trust, Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, and NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde.
Professor Claire Verrill, lead researcher on the project, said the trial would “pave the way for advanced AI technologies” to be rolled out in the NHS.
“This makes it possible to provide more accurate and precise information to men who can make more informed decisions with their clinical team about whether they can safely be monitored or whether they need treatment – and if so, help guide those decisions,” he added.
Dr Matthew Hobbs, director of Prostate Cancer Research UK, said: “Artificial intelligence has the potential to vastly improve prostate cancer care and ensure that every man has the most accurate and best treatment plan for his particular cancer.”
We have been working with Artera for several years and I believe that their AI tool is one of the most exciting that has been developed. But exciting AI tools can only make a difference if they can be properly evaluated.
This new project from Professor Verrill and his team is very exciting because it will test this new technology in a real-world setting, meaning we can provide the definitive evidence needed to roll it out across the NHS.
According to Prostate Cancer UK, prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men and affects one in eight men in their lifetime.
According to the National Prostate Cancer Audit (NPCA), an estimated 58,218 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in England in 2024, up from 53,462 the year before.
Andre Stova, CEO and co-founder of Artera, said: “We developed the ArteraAI prostate biopsy test to help improve the lives of prostate cancer patients and have spent years gathering evidence on its potential impact.
We are delighted to be working with Professor Verrill and his team to see how this test can be used to maximize benefit for men in the NHS and hope to soon see this tool used to personalize prostate cancer care for men in the UK.
News of the study comes days after it emerged that an NHS trial was using artificial intelligence to interpret MRI scans of men with suspected prostate cancer.
If the software detects a scan that is high-risk, it is sent to a radiologist for priority review and the patient is booked in for a biopsy on the same day.
Specialists can then review the results and rule out or diagnose prostate cancer more quickly.
NHS England said the pilot will run in 15 hospitals.
