Environment Near Breast Cancer Tumors May Hold Key Information for Prognosis
By using AI to analyze tissue patterns, researchers gain new insights into why some patients respond better to specific treatments
By Hannah Robbins
Cells and tissues surrounding a breast cancer tumor may hold critical information about how patients will respond to treatment, according to a new study from Johns Hopkins University.
The research represents a significant step toward developing artificial intelligence tools that could help oncologists more accurately determine prognoses and decide which treatments may be most effective on a case-by-case basis.
“When we can identify recurring elements in the microenvironments—cancerous cells, specific types of noncancerous cells, and their patterns of spatial organization—they’re like little flags saying, ‘Turn your attention over here, we may be important,'” said senior author Jeremias Sulam, an assistant professor of biomedical engineering who studies machine learning at Johns Hopkins University. “Our study is about identifying patterns and biomarkers that could help us understand how the disease progresses.”
The research was featured on the cover of the March issue of Patterns. While the researchers stressed that the technology is still some time away from directly enhancing patient care, they said it holds great promise for improving breast cancer treatments.