University News Last updated 23 July 2024
Operating on a patient鈥檚 digital twin prior to actual surgery could help revolutionise complex cancer care, says a leading artificial intelligence expert at 探花直播 (BCU).
Professor Muhammad Bilal听believes the technological advancement will allow surgeons to be fully prepared when an individual eventually goes under the knife.听
鈥淲e鈥檙e a way off from robotic platforms conducting operations autonomously, but the technological advancements in visual computing and data integrations are the foundational steps as we tread into an increasingly advanced digital future,鈥� said Professor Bilal.听
鈥淚n the future, a surgeon will be able to understand complex patient anatomy preoperatively, navigate potential operative hurdles, and even perform a virtual mock the entire operation on a digital twin in VR before operating on the patient.鈥澨�
Professor Bilal, who has considerable experience in developing and integrating technology in a wide range of ecosystems,听is working alongside colleagues at (UHB) to lead advances in cancer care.听
鈥淏y digitalising the clinical workflow, we can improve patient safety, enhance productivity and efficiency, and provide superior care delivery for patients,鈥� said the Professor of Applied Artificial Intelligence and Technology Ethics at BCU.听
鈥淲e want to create impactful digital technologies that make data easier to integrate, analyse and interpret for healthcare professionals, facilitating critical decision-making.鈥澨�
Dr Shazad Ashraf, a bowel cancer surgeon at UHB working with Professor Bilal, says听digital solutions can be extremely beneficial for complex听cancer care.听
鈥淓fficient, secure, and rapid data flow from primary to secondary care can be particularly challenging, especially when multiple investigation modalities are required to determine whether a patient has cancer,鈥� said Dr Ashraf.听
鈥淧rocessing large numbers of urgent referrals is also a significant problem. With a catchment of two million people, we face a significant pressure on local diagnostic services.听
鈥淚n a typical large hospital cancer meeting, we discuss between 30-50 patients in two hours, giving us only a few minutes per patient to plan their treatment and make high-stake decisions.听
鈥淒igital solutions that can assess large patient datasets to identify and track potential cancer patients quickly would be of huge benefit.鈥澨�
Professor Bilal鈥檚 team has already created听SwiftCare, a prototype designed to听stratify cancer risk in primary care听and听automatically听complete听referral forms to听reduce processing times.听
The project听has received 拢40,000 from NHS England for this early phase research.听
鈥淥ur top priority in the NHS is to apply digital technology to solve real-world problems,鈥� said Dr Ashraf. 鈥淲e aim to grow and foster this kind of collaboration with BCU.鈥澨�