AI & cancer: Big data, big gains for medicine

The words artificial intelligence (AI) and ‘machine learning’ (ML) are likely familiar to anyone in the healthcare sector by now; the phrases are used so regularly that they may perhaps begin to lose their impact, especially when they are not connected to something familiar. Cancer – and cancer screenings – are familiar to us all in a professional or a personal capacity, so the use of AI in this sphere is something we will not only comprehend but likely also benefit from in our lifetimes.

AI and ML are breaking major ground in biomedical research and healthcare. Specifically, in the areas of cancer research and oncology, recent developments could yield a vast amount of potential applications. The possibilities within imaging data and genome-scale experimental studies – only a fraction of what AI is capable of supporting in oncology – are endless.

Owing to the convergence of big data and cancer research, we are now fortunate to see a quantum leap forward in the detection and diagnosis of cancer, as well as more profound methods of classifying new therapeutic targets.

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