reading & research

Landmark clinical study shows MRgFUS effective for bone mets pain.

A Landmark Study on Palliation of Bone Mets PainWhen a primary cancer such as cancer of the breast, prostate or lung spreads to the bone (bone mets), treatment strategies become complex. In today’s world of oncology, better systemic chemotherapies can add months and even years to a patient’s life; in addition, local cancer control of […] KEEP READING

Understanding cartilage increases awareness of its importance.

What You Should Know About CartilageOne of the most fascinating components of the human body is cartilage, an incredibly versatile material. Trying to describe cartilage is like the six blind men who try to figure out what an elephant is: “The elephant is like a pillar,” said the man who touched his leg. “Oh no! […] KEEP READING

Essential tremor gets worse in stressful situations.

How Stress Makes Essential Tremor WorseEssential tremor (ET) is the most common form of uncontrollable rhythmic shaking, though it is sometimes misdiagnosed as Parkinson’s disease. The involuntary trembling results from abnormal communication between certain areas of the brain (cerebellum, thalamus, and brain stem). It is estimated that 10 million Americans suffer from ET, though many […] KEEP READING

Artificial Intelligence in Medicine: Benefitting the World of Prostate Cancer

To paraphrase a famous poem, “How can AI serve prostate cancer? Let me count the ways.” In some ways, clinical researchers and software engineers have established a solid foundation for applying Artificial Intelligence (AI) to the detection, diagnosis, treatment and follow-up of prostate cancer (PCa). On the other hand, given the oceanic potential, we’ve only […] CONTINUE

CATEGORY:: Artificial Intelligence, Prostate imaging

Artificial Intelligence in Medicine: How AI Can Identify When to Add ADT to Prostate Cancer Radiation

Aggressive prostate cancer (PCa) comes with higher chances for recurrence—and often there’s no way to know if the PCa has started to spread at the time of treatment. It’s like a time bomb with an unanswered question: has the clock been activated? Therefore, today’s clinical standard of care treats it as if the clock is […] CONTINUE

CATEGORY:: Artificial Intelligence

Artificial Intelligence in Medicine: Competition Improves AI’s Accuracy in Grading Prostate Cancer

According to Swedish and Dutch experts, there’s often a bias problem in Artificial Intelligence (AI) programs designed to grade prostate cancer (PCa) aggressiveness. That is, those who develop algorithms that are trained on a particular set of data are also the people who evaluate their accuracy. Where’s the objectivity in that method? There’s a risk […] CONTINUE

CATEGORY:: Artificial Intelligence, Prostate imaging

Artificial Intelligence in Medicine: Deep Learning Supports Active Surveillance

The Declaration of Independence cites the pursuit of happiness as one of the inalienable rights with which we are all born. Pursuing your happiness is easy when your life is going along as usual. However, an unpredictable unpleasant event such as a diagnosis of prostate cancer (PCa) slams the brakes on your normal quality of […] CONTINUE

CATEGORY:: Artificial Intelligence, Prostate imaging

Artificial Intelligence in Medicine: Circulating Tumor Cells Predict Prostate Cancer Spread

If you look at an MRI image of a prostate gland, what do you see? You see different shades of gray that form into various useful features that a radiologist reads and interprets. However, a computer is not a human reader. Therefore, in order to be useful for Artificial Intelligence, the measurable physical […] CONTINUE

CATEGORY:: Artificial Intelligence, Prostate imaging

Artificial Intelligence Researchers Explore the Dendritic Architecture of the Human Brain

When does the human brain begin learning? Amazingly, brain development and preparation for cognitive function begin before birth! According to Kadic & Kurjac (2018), “Fetal action planning is established by 22 weeks and investigations using four-dimensional ultrasound reveal that complexity of fetal motor action and behavior increases as pregnancy progresses…The capacity of the fetus to […] CONTINUE

CATEGORY:: Artificial Intelligence

Artificial Intelligence Meets 3-D Imaging Prostate Biopsy

Did you ever shop for a dozen eggs and open the carton to make sure none are cracked? After assessing they’re all intact, that’s as far as your inspection goes. Now imagine you had x-ray vision, and you could see all 12 yolks in their 3-dimensional glory. You would know if each egg is perfect, […] CONTINUE

CATEGORY:: Artificial Intelligence

Artificial Intelligence in Medicine: Designing a Virtual Prostate Biopsy Using MRI Scans

Your PSA blood test came back abnormally high. Your doctor says you might have prostate cancer (PCa) and wants to do a needle biopsy, but guess what? You have a choice. Either: a) He numbs you up and pokes your prostate gland with needles in order to extract tissue samples, or b) He sends you […] CONTINUE

CATEGORY:: Artificial Intelligence, Prostate imaging

Will Artificial Intelligence Determine What You Should Eat?

How would you like a tailor-made food plan that told you the healthiest things to eat based entirely on your personal biology? The analysis of what you need, as a unique individual, would be based on things like your gut microbiome, your blood glucose levels, your overall metabolism, your activity level, and so much more. […] CONTINUE

CATEGORY:: Artificial Intelligence

Artificial Intelligence in Medicine: Can AI Predict Prostate Cancer Outcomes?

If there were an accurate crystal ball, would you want to know your future? And if you knew something bad was going to happen, would you try to take steps to avoid it? The ancient Greek notion that you can’t escape your fate is illustrated by the tragic tale of King Oedipus, who was informed […] CONTINUE

CATEGORY:: Artificial Intelligence, Prostate imaging