A cancer charity has invested hundreds of thousands of pounds in a platform using artificial intelligence (AI) to diagnose prostate cancer faster.
Lucida Medical – a University of Cambridge spin-out company – has developed Pi, which uses AI to detect prostate cancer cases from MRI scans.
Macmillan Cancer Support has backed the business with £350,100.
It is the second investment from its two-year £3.5 million Innovation Impact Investment Portfolio, which is backing start-ups developing innovative cancer care products.
It is usually diagnosed using blood tests, MRI scans and biopsies.
Lucida Medical chief executive Dr Antony Rix said screening for prostate cancer “is associated with earlier stages of detection and better survival rates”, and the avoidance of “unnecessary biopsies can have a transformative impact on the NHS as well as on patients”.
Tanya Humphreys, director of innovation at Macmillan, said Pi “has the potential to transform the diagnosis of prostate cancer”.
The charity estimates there could be one million men living with the disease in the UK by 2040.
She added: “Integrating AI with MRI analysis, Pi offers a level of precision in diagnosis that could greatly enhance the accuracy and efficiency of prostate cancer detection.
“Our consultations with leading clinicians, people with cancer, and health technology experts have all attested to the likely impact of Lucida’s technology in reducing the rate of missed cancers and unnecessary biopsies, thereby improving patient outcomes and experience.
“We are really excited about the possibilities this partnership brings and are deeply committed to advancing cancer care in the UK.”
Professor Evis Sala, co-founder and chief medical officer at Lucida Medical, said: “We seek to give every radiologist technology that can precisely identify significant cancers, allowing more patients to benefit from early detection and treatment.
