OCRA-funded research using artificial intelligence (AI) for ovarian cancer early detection was highlighted in the BBC’s six-part series on how AI is transforming medicine.
Dr. Daniel Heller, an OCRA-funded researcher at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, shared how his team is using AI and nanotechnology to develop a cutting-edge blood test for early ovarian cancer detection. This test employs carbon nanotubes to help identify cancer at its earliest stages, potentially years before symptoms appear. Dr. Heller’s research is part of an OCRA-funded study in partnership with Microsoft AI for Health.
“We can look at the data and we will not make sense of it at all. We can only see the patterns that are different with AI,” said Dr. Heller, emphasizing the critical role of advanced algorithms in interpreting complex data.
The AI algorithm powering this innovation has been trained on data from a small number of patient samples, demonstrating the importance of robust data in driving breakthroughs. “People aren’t sharing their data, or there’s not a mechanism to do it,” says Audra Moran, President & CEO, Ovarian Cancer Research Alliance.
To accelerate progress across the sector, OCRA is working to fund a patient registry that will increase the amount of samples available for research and foster international collaboration.
“It’s early days,” said Ms. Moran, “we’re still in the wild west of AI now.”
Learn more in “AI is trained to spot warning signs in blood test,” Padraig Belton, Technology reporter for BBC.
Dr. Heller’s grant was made possible in part by generous donations from The Edmée Firth Fund for Research in Ovarian Cancer (EFFROC) and The Teal Foundation.
