AGH and Swietokrzyskie Oncology Center join forces for the benefit of patients

- AGH, together with the newly established Artificial Intelligence Center of Excellence within its structures, aims to ensure that the competencies of its employees serve the development and commercialization of solutions to support various areas of economic activity, including key ones such as health care. Nevertheless, the real challenges faced by business entities that we could jointly solve must be formulated by our partners. That's why the signed agreement provides a link between two institutions that, by working together, can effectively solve complex problems for the benefit of society as a whole," said Prof. Rafal Wiśniowski, AGH pro-rector for cooperation.

As Prof. Stanislaw Góźdź, director of the Swietokrzyskie Oncology Center, stressed, oncology is facing a powerful challenge - the ever-increasing incidence of malignant tumors.

- That's why we are joining forces with AGH scientists to develop and introduce innovative technological solutions, such as artificial intelligence, into our practice, which will enable us to treat patients more safely and effectively. We are happy that our continued cooperation with AGH, which began a decade ago, will continue for the benefit of patients," the ŚCO director indicated.

Meanwhile, the subject of the use of computer methods in supporting procedures in oncology has been present in research conducted at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Automation, Computer Science and Biomedical Engineering at AGH University of Science and Technology for many years. Research projects carried out in recent years have concerned both the development of methods for analyzing images acquired during imaging examinations of oncology patients, statistical methods in controlling the correctness of the implementation of radiotherapy plans, and the construction of phantoms for calibrating equipment used in radiotherapy.

- Cooperation with the team of the Swietokrzyskie Oncology Center, access to data, measuring and therapeutic devices at the Center's disposal opens up new prospects for research in this area and allows us to think about new challenges, which is the essence of research activity," added Prof. Zbislaw Tabor, coordinator of the cooperation with AGH.

As explained by Dr. n.ph. Pawel Wolowiec, a medical physics specialist and head of the ŚCO's Department of Medical Physics, one of the planned studies will create computer models that will be used to analyze radiation therapy treatment plans for inaccuracies associated with the implementation of those plans.

- These inaccuracies may be due to the mechanical parameters of the gas pedal, differences in patient positioning or changes in the patient's anatomy throughout treatment. Knowing the uncertainty of dose distribution calculations in an individual patient's treatment plan, based on the models created, will help us decide on the optimal treatment plan for the patient, he pointed out.

In order to create such models, among other things, information is needed on how the patient's anatomy changes throughout the course of the radiotherapy course (even 6 weeks). This information can be obtained from cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) scans, which are used to verify the patient's positioning before the start of each treatment session.

- Images from cone-beam CT scans will make it possible to create models that reflect the patient's anatomical changes throughout treatment. This will be the task of our AGH partners," added Dr. Pawel Wolowiec.

As noted by Dr. Jacek Sadowski, head of the Radiation Therapy Department at the ŚCO, oncology has become a multidisciplinary field, increasingly technologically advanced. - The treatment of each patient is not only radiotherapy, but also chemotherapy and immunotherapy. We are taking advantage of new data provided by molecular biology. The amount of data we need to know, collect, and then draw conclusions from, would be impossible for the human mind to process without the help of an advanced system. To treat properly, we need to have the right base. Without it, we are not able to take a step forward.

Marek Boguslawski, deputy marshal of the Świętokrzyskie region, stressed that information technology, used in medicine, results in oncology patients being treated more safely and effectively, with a lower risk of complications.

Long-term cooperation between the ŚCO and AGH assumes, among other things, joint interdisciplinary research, the creation of joint research programs, the acquisition of funding for scientific and research projects
from national and international funds. The agreement also assumes expert evaluation of potential solutions and ideas in the context of medical applications. The University and the Center declare that they will jointly conduct preliminary research, conditioning the possibility of applying for funding for research projects or attempting clinical verification of jointly developed solutions. Cooperation between the medical and technical communities may also contribute to an increase in the number of publications of the results of jointly conducted research in both medical and technical journals of international scope.

Elaborated. on the basis of: onkol.kielce.pl