Artificial intelligence (AI) as a remedy for treatment has been springing up in hospitals and clinics around the world in both research and direct patient care settings. In the field of oncology, emerging AI technologies for medical applications and healthcare has started doing wonders as they can detect tumors, diagnose cancers, and even generate chemotherapy treatment recommendations that adjust in real-time to patient responses.
Researchers and scientists from the University of Surrey and the University of California used a type of graph-based AI called network analysis (NA) to examine the relationships between 38 common symptoms experienced by more than 1,300 patients. Cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy may soon benefit from a form of artificial intelligence (AI) designed to identify and predict how their symptoms may develop, to alleviate potential distress and suffering.
This fresh outlook will allow us to develop and test novel with more targeted interventions to decrease symptom burden in cancer patients who are undergoing chemotherapy. – Christine Miaskowski from the University of California
Cancer patients’ most common symptoms while undergoing chemotherapy were nausea, difficulty concentrating, fatigue, drowsiness, dry mouth, hot flushes, numbness, and nervousness. Researchers grouped these symptoms into three key networks: occurrence, severity, and distress.
Nausea is categorized as a persistent symptom that compromises a patient’s nutritional status, results in significant psychological distress, harms the quality of life, and can result in the discontinuation of cancer treatment by a study published in the journal Nature Scientific Reports.
Researchers analyzed the existing data of the symptoms experienced by cancer patients so to help in precise diagnosis. It is of much significance that AI tools are becoming much more accurate and with additional functionalities, it would be easier to predict their symptoms explicitly.
