By C. J. De Mel, Jadetimes News
South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust (STSFT) said it will continue to use the technology after a study found it increased the chances of spotting precancerous lesions in the bowel. STSFT used the GI Genius AI device during colonoscopies—a camera inside the bowel. The trial said it enabled an average of 0.36 extra lesions, or adenomas, to be found on a colonoscopy.
STSFT Consultant Gastroenterologist, Professor Colin Rees, said: "This trial has proven that artificial intelligence can meaningfully boost the detection of bowel abnormalities that may turn into cancer. In practical terms this means many more lesions that could develop into cancer are identified and removed ".
This makes the AI better at spotting small, flat polyps, which are very easy to miss by the human eye, so this means a better way of preventing bowel cancer. In the UK, there are about 43,000 new cases of bowel cancer annually, with around 16,000 deaths. Called the Colo-detect trial and having included 2,032 patients under treatment in 10 centers in the UK, the result was that the AI device detected adenomas in another eight out of 100 patients without raising the risk of complications.
Speaking at the recent Royal College of Radiologists' annual congress in Liverpool, Prof Rees was hopeful that AI would continue to develop quickly in the medical practice so that it can be learned more by new images, "We are now using the technique in our practice every day, and I hope it will be adopted in more widely in the future the trial was undertaken by STSFT> in partnership with Newcastle University, with participation from 10 trusts from across England.
