AI detects 40 percent more polyps in the intestines, reducing the chances of cancer

Artificial Intelligence (AI) can help find 40 percent more polyps in the intestines, according to the Radboudumc in Nijmegen. Polyps can be a precursor to cancer.

Over 100,000 people a year have an endoscopy in the large intestine. This entails a camera being brought in to see if something is wrong. If the polyps, which are bulges in the intestinal wall, are removed immediately, the risk of colon cancer is significantly reduced.

The polyps are not always found using the usual method. "A doctor can miss polyps because they are in the image for just too short a time or the attention is focused in a different place," says physician-researcher Michiel Maas. "But a computer looks at every pixel in the image and is equally alert every millisecond. That provides enormous added value." A purple square appears on the screen if a spot looks suspicious so that the doctor knows that they need to take a closer look.

This was demonstrated in a study of almost a thousand patients, in which ten hospitals in different countries participated. It was also recently announced that a new test can detect many more pre-cancerous stages in feces. This was the result of research led by the Antoni van Leeuwenhoek Hospital. The new test measures three proteins in stool that people send for the screening. The current test measures only one protein.