Machine learning systems for image recognition aren’t always perfect — and neither are AI systems marketed for medical use, whether they use image recognition or not. But here’s an example of image recognition used in a medical context where the system appears to have succeeded at something significant — and it’s something humans can’t do, or at least can’t do well.
“Researchers used the AI tool Subtype and Stage Inference (SuStaIn) to scan the MRI brain scans of 6,322 patients with MS, letting SuStaIn train itself unsupervised. The AI identified 3 previously unknown patterns …” (Pharmacy Times). The model was then tested on MRIs from “a separate independent cohort of 3,068 patients” and successfully identified the three new MS subtypes in them.
Subtype and Stage Inference (SuStaIn) was introduced in this 2018 paper. It is an “unsupervised machine-learning technique that identifies population subgroups with common patterns of disease progression” using MRI images. The original researchers were studying dementia.
Why does it matter? Identifying the subtype of the disease multiple sclerosis (MS) enables doctors to pursue different treatments for them, which might lead to better results for patients.
“While further clinical studies are needed, there was a clear difference, by subtype, in patients’ response to different treatments and in accumulation of disability over time. This is an important step towards predicting individual responses to therapies,” said Dr. Arman Eshaghi, the lead researcher (EurekAlert).
Sources: Artificial Intelligence Weekly newsletter, from The Wall Street Journal; Pharmacy Times; EurekAlert.
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