AI tech helps Taiwan doctors identify brain tumors more accurately
At a press conference, NTUH Superintendent Wu Ming-shiang (吳明賢) described VBrain, a brain tumor auto-contouring system developed by Boston-based Vysioneer LLC, as an "eagle eye."
The system has been used at NTUH for the past 18 months as part of clinical trials and helped doctors treat more than 100 patients with brain tumors, including a terminally ill woman whose lung cancer metastasized to her brain.
Doctor Xiao Fu-ren (蕭輔仁) said he had successfully identified nine tumors in the female patient based on her imaging testing, but VBrain later detected two more.
As a result, the patient received radiation therapy targeting the 11 tumors, saving her both time and money spent on a second treatment in the event the two tumors were not initially identified, according to Xiao.
Hsu Feng-ming (許峯銘), who specializes in radiation oncology at NTUH, said 10 percent of tiny brain tumors, mostly malicious brain metastases, can be missed with manual contouring.
He also estimated that using AI technology cuts the time spent on tumor contouring by 50 percent, which enables patients to receive the treatment they need as soon as possible.