AI helps junior doctors detect bowel cancer: study
A study by researchers at the Chinese University has found that artificial intelligence (AI) can act as an advisor to junior doctors, improving their ability to detect bowel cancer by increasing the likelihood of finding abnormal cells in the colon. Twenty-two doctors with less than three years' experience took part in the study between 2021 and 2022.  They performed colonoscopies on 766 patients, with half of the procedures assisted by AI. Philip Chiu, a lead researcher from the University's department of surgery, said using AI increased the chances of finding adenomas – abnormal cells in the colon that could potentially develop into colorectal cancer – by 13 percent compared to not using AI.  "Adenoma detection rate is one of the gold standards to assess the quality of colonoscopy... the higher the detection rate, the more likely we are to detect polyps, which are precursors to colorectal cancer," he said.  Chiu also noted that the AI system can bridge the experience gap between junior and senior doctors during endoscopy procedures.  “The junior doctors may not have the good experience as compared to the senior doctors, because they may have 10 or 20 years of experience difference. The AI will fill the gap, providing the junior endoscopists with an advisor behind," he said.  "It's just like a co-piloting principle. Even during the training of a pilot, there will be a senior pilot that is observing the procedure and also helping the junior pilot to become mature. And I think this AI system is doing this kind of role.”