Health IT, Pharma

In Watson’s latest healthcare technology news, it takes on personalized brain tumor treatment

Watson is turning into quite the oncology expert. In its latest healthcare technology news, the […]

Watson is turning into quite the oncology expert. In its latest healthcare technology news, the computer platform is being used as part of a collaboration between IBM and New York Genome Center.  Glioblastomas, an aggressive, frequently malignant brain tumor that kills more than 13,000 people in the U.S. each year, will be the focus of a genomic research initiative.

One of the biggest frustrations for glioblastoma patients is they have not been able to benefit from personalized cancer treatments that zero in on their specific mutation. Why? The complexities posed by correlating data from genome sequencing with medical journals and clinical studies.

The biggest problem with big data is there is too much of it. The daunting task of sifting through reams and reams of clinical data means the current process is inefficient and not as effective as it could be with, say, a life science innovation powered by Watson.

In a healthcare technology news development, a new prototype of Watson will be used to analyze genetic data along with drug databases and biomedical journal articles. Watson learns as it processes new information, so the goal is to increase the number of patients who have access to care options tailored to their disease’s DNA.

“The real challenge before us is how to make sense of massive quantities of genetic data and translate that information into better treatments for patients.” Dr. Robert Darnell, president and scientific director of the New York Genome Center, said in a statement. “Applying the cognitive computing power of Watson is going to revolutionize genomics and accelerate the opportunity to improve outcomes for patients with deadly diseases by providing personalized treatment.”

Watson is working in oncology in other institutions. Maine Center for Cancer Medicine and New York’s Westmed Medical Group are teaching Watson how to interpret clinical information to diagnose lung cancer. The idea is Watson scans electronic medical records and other clinical data, produces treatment options based on previous results and patient histories and ranks them in order of its confidence level. It builds on work by Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, and health insurer WellPoint, which taught Watson how to analyze and interpret reams of clinical data.

Leukemia is the lead focus of Watson’s work with MD Anderson Cancer Center at the University of Texas, which will eventually focus on seven other cancers.

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