At the crossroads of oncology and AI: how algorithms can improve cancer care

The Netherlands Cancer Institute (NKI) and the University of Amsterdam (UvA) have partnered with Elekta Oncology Systems to establish two labs focused on developing artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms to improve cancer treatment. The AI for Oncology lab was established in 2021 to advance AI across a broad range of the NKI's work, including pathology and surgical and medical oncology. The second lab, called POP-AART (Partnership for Online Personalized AI-driven Adaptive Radiation Therapy), focuses on the use of AI for precision radiotherapy. Jan-Jakob Sonke, who leads the NKI's adaptive radiotherapy research group, believes that AI can speed up automation in healthcare to such an extent that it would "ease the healthcare crisis." Sonke expects that in the future, AI could be used to individualize cancer treatment on a daily basis to make it more effective and more affordable for society.