UTMB Galveston first in Texas to use artificial intelligence for routine cancer diagnosis

GALVESTON, Texas – University of Texas Medical Branch Galveston pathologists can now use AI to help diagnose prostate cancer.

UTMB said it’s the first academic healthcare center in Texas to add an artificial intelligence-based tool to its routine workflow for the diagnosis of prostate cancer.

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It works by creating digital overlays of every prostate biopsy that comes through the lab. UTMB said the overlay will color code it in a way that allows for a more accurate diagnosis, and they say it’s already picked up cancer missed by the human eye.

UTMB Galveston first in Texas to use AI for routine cancer diagnosis (Copyright 2024 by UTMB Galveston - All rights reserved.)

Dr. Mike Laposata, chair of the pathology department, said patients will be the main beneficiaries of this innovation.

“Pathologists are human; when you have five tumor cells stuck away in the corner of a biopsy, it may be difficult to find them,” Laposata said. “Machines are fallible too, but if you put the two together the likelihood of missing a tumor now is virtually zero. To be one of the first academic medical centers in the United States to do this is remarkable.”

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The next step is using the tool for breast biopsies.