Boy meets Sci-Fi.
January 24, 2024
The Terminator became one of my all-time favorite sci-fi movies the day I snuck into the theater with my older brother and his friends back in ’84 (can you blame me for being curious?). For those who haven’t seen it, the film features a cyborg assassin and resistance fighter sent back in time to battle over the fate of humanity.
The film features a variety of futuristic technologies such as low-light and infrared vision, a weaponized arm, self-healing living tissue, a bullet-proof endoskeleton, and a powerful AI neural network.
While the film is fiction, the concepts it introduced around cybernetics have proven to be somewhat predictive. Artificial neural networks are now a reality and can identify intricate data patterns to solve complex problems. In the medical sector, businesses are increasingly identifying applications for this technology to improve imaging and analysis tools, pathology analysis tools, and clinical decision support systems.
In 2021, the British Journal of Cancer published an article claiming AI algorithms increase diagnostic accuracy for radiologists. Pediatric Radiology also published an article that same year citing examples of increased diagnostic efficiency due to AI intervention. The figure below includes the six objectives sited in the article that “can be pursued with [AI] in radiology to improve efficiency and health outcomes.” These articles are just a couple examples that demonstrate the promising applications AI has in healthcare and other industries over the coming years.
As promising as it appears, there are some practical challenges in making AI-powered medical device and diagnostic tools a reality. First and foremost is safety (i.e. security) and reliability to avoid any unintended consequences. Such devices must also be affordable and accessible. Despite these challenges, AI-powered medical devices appear promising and will revolutionize medical diagnostics and treatment. As AI technology evolves, we expect a surge in innovative and efficient AI-powered medical devices. On to the future!
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