Taipei (Taiwan News) — National Taiwan University Hospital collaborated with the National Taiwan University Institute of Applied Mathematical Sciences to develop the world's first AI pancreatic cancer diagnosis system, “Pancrea Saver.”
Pancreatic cancer is known as the "king of cancers" due to its vague early symptoms and lack of effective screening methods. It is often diagnosed at a late stage, when the cancer may have spread to other organs.
National Taiwan University Hospital Medical Imaging Department Doctor Chen Po-ting (陳柏廷) said that early treatment of pancreatic cancer, when the tumor is smaller than 2 centimeters, can increase the survival rate to as high as 80%. However, he noted that because the organ is located deep within the abdomen, CT imaging often has limitations in detecting early-stage tumors, per CNA.
Chen said the system incorporates a deep learning model that can instantly analyze a patient's CT images and highlight suspicious lesions. He added the interpretation process takes two minutes and achieves a 90% detection accuracy for tumors smaller than 2 cm.
The system was launched at NTUH last year and has been used by around 30 patients. The hospital added that patients from other hospitals can also bring their imaging data for evaluation.
In 2022, pancreatic cancer was the seventh leading cause of cancer-related deaths in Taiwan. In 2023, it claimed the lives of nearly 2,900 individuals, with around 3,000 to 4,000 new cases diagnosed annually.
According to the Liver Disease Prevention and Treatment Research Foundation, only about 20% of patients are diagnosed at an early stage when surgery is still an option. The remaining 80% have cancer cells spread, making surgery unfeasible.
Liao Wei-chih (廖偉智), director of the hospital’s department of integrated diagnostics and therapeutics, said that pancreatic cancer progresses rapidly, with significant changes in tumor size within three months. He recommended that individuals with chronic pancreatitis, pancreatic cysts, a family history of pancreatic cancer, or diabetes undergo screening using the AI system.
The hospital added the system has received four invention patents in Taiwan and the US. It has also been approved as a medical device by Taiwan's Food and Drug Administration and certified by the US FDA.
