A recent study by researchers at the University of North Carolina (UNC) Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center shows cognitive computing can help doctors find more clinical trials and therapeutic options for their cancer patients based on the genetic makeup of their tumors.
The findings of the study, which were published in The Oncologist, show that cognitive computing applications can help physicians stay on top of the growing amount of scientific literature and therapeutic options available in the field of cancer genetics, according to a university press release.
“Our findings, while preliminary, demonstrate that cognitive computing might have a role in identifying more therapeutic options for cancer patients,” Dr. William Kim, UNC Lineberger’s associate professor of medicine and genetics in the UNC School of Medicine and the study’s corresponding author, said in the release. “I can tell you that as a practicing oncologist, it’s very reassuring for patients to know that we’re able to explore all possible options for them in a very systematic manner.”
Researchers, who used IBM Watson for Genomics, studied cognitive computing versus a panel of cancer experts to see which was more effective in identifying therapeutic options, the release said. The study involved the analysis of more than 1,000 cancer cases. Watson identified an additional 323 potential therapeutic options for patients, or one-third of the cases reviewed that the molecular tumor board did not identify.
