Regional One Health’s Center for Innovation is hosting ONExTalks, a series of presentations aimed at sharing new concepts to inspire innovation.
Dr. Ashley Hendrix, a breast surgical oncologist at Regional One Health Cancer Care, kicked off the series by discussing how Artificial Intelligence can help doctors and other experts enhance breast cancer care.
She says it is important to note AI can’t replace human expertise, but we can collaborate with it to improve patient care and how we do our jobs.
Artificial Intelligence, or AI, has exploded in recent years – and it is here to stay. Rather than fear it, we should find ways to work with AI to improve our work and personal lives.
That is the message from nationally renowned breast surgical oncologist Ashley Hendrix, MD, MBA, FACS, who sees patients at Regional One Health Cancer Care. Dr. Hendrix hosted the inaugural event in the Regional One Health Center for Innovation ONExTalks speaker series, exploring the question, “What if we used AI in breast care?”
Dr. Hendrix said it’s important to look at AI not as something that will replace human expertise, but something we can work with to improve how we do our jobs.
“People fear AI because of how it’s portrayed in the media and movies, but it has been around a long time, and we actually already use it every day,” she said, citing examples like Siri, Ring doorbells, and social media algorithms. “We’ve accepted it in many places of your life, so why are we resistant in others?”
Dr. Hendrix said AI is a technological science that develops theories, methods and technology to extend and expand human intelligence. It is based on inputting data, using an algorithm to connect the data points, and then providing a requested output.
Having good data is the key, as good input leads to good output, she said.
Therefore, using AI in your professional life requires knowledge about what type of information and instructions to provide as well as the ability to analyze the output and use it effectively.
“AI is complicated, but we shouldn’t be afraid of it,” breast surgical oncologist Dr. Ashley Hendrix says. “We should ask ourselves how we can collaborate with it and normalize it as part of our day.”
“None of this is meant to get rid of anybody or replace human expertise,” Dr. Hendrix stressed. “It’s meant to decrease some of the things you just have to get through.”
For example, she said, doctors could use AI to help with charting.
Instead of spending 20 minutes after an appointment writing a patient’s chart from scratch, a physician could record the conversation and ask AI to condense it and summarize it, taking out repetition and unnecessary information. Then, the doctor could review and adjust the chart, just like they would if it were prepared by a scribe or a resident.
“If I want to get more face time with my patients, one way is to free up some of the time I spend on administrative tasks,” Dr. Hendrix explained.
There have also been studies on the use of AI in predicting breast cancer risk.
The Breast Cancer Risk Assessment Tool (BCRAT) calculates a patient’s risk of getting breast cancer based on specific data points. In 2019, a Yale University study found having AI interpret data entered into BCRAT was just as accurate as a clinician interpretation.
Diagnostic processes are another area AI can support, Dr. Hendrix said.
In radiology, AI is already used to augment and enhance images, and Computer Aided Detection (CAD) is standard practice to support a radiologist’s reading. If CAD were improved further, she said, it’s possible AI could be a tool to provide every patient with a second review of their image.
In breast cancer care, AI can help with risk assessment, diagnosis, surgery and more – and it can also be used for administrative tasks so doctors have more time to spend with their patients.
Pathologists could use AI to maximize their resources as well, Dr. Hendrix said. If the technology were used to review slides and select the best specimens, a pathologist could focus on looking at the slides they truly need to make a diagnosis.
There are also potential applications during surgery.
By inputting guidelines, surgeons could have AI alert them during robotic or laparoscopic surgery if they’re getting close to something they shouldn’t touch: “It’s like how your car beeps when you can’t change lanes, or even the game Operation,” Dr. Hendrix said. “It can also be used to analyze a student’s movements during surgery so we can tailor feedback and education.”
There are many more applications worth exploring, Dr. Hendrix said, including using AI as a tool to help with surgical risk assessment, treatment planning, and predicting the likelihood of cancer recurring. All of those can help patients avoid unnecessary tests and procedures and pave the way for better care plans.
Dr. Hendrix said using AI in the medical field requires a lot of input from both care providers and technology experts, but there are plenty of potential benefits. “AI is complicated, but we shouldn’t be afraid of it,” she said. “We should ask ourselves how we can collaborate with it and normalize it as part of our day.”
The Center for Innovation’s ONExTalks are inspired by TED Talks and the TEDx Program. They are a series of short, carefully prepared live presentations, demonstrations, virtual webinars or videos designed to spread ideas and concepts that aim to inspire, foster learning, and provoke conversations that have the potential to disrupt the industry and the local ecosystem.