Bangkok Post – Researchers use AI to detect pancreatic cancer sooner

DEAR DOCTORS: A dear friend was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. It was so advanced, he died just a month later. I recently saw a discussion on television about using AI to detect pancreatic cancer early, while it is still curable. How would that work?

DEAR READER: With a five-year survival rate of only 9%, pancreatic cancer is among the deadliest of the major cancers. It accounts for just 3% of all cancers diagnosed in the United States, which makes it fairly rare. And yet it is the third-leading cause of cancer-related deaths, behind lung and colorectal cancer.

One of the main factors driving such a high mortality rate is the difficulty of catching this cancer at an early stage. This is due, in large part, to the location of the organ. The pancreas itself is small, just 15cm long. It is situated deep inside the abdomen, tucked among the liver, spleen, small…