Hackensack and Spotiearly partnered to utilize AI and more in early cancer detection

Image Credit: Fierce Healthcare

Announcement 

Hackensack Meridian Health, a non-profit healthcare US-based organization, has entered a partnership with SpotiEarly for detecting early cancer with the help of trained dogs and AI potential. The dogs are capable of addressing fluctuation in odor that can signal disease before symptoms are visible. Though the trial and clinical research will be performed by the Hennessy Institute for Applied Molecular Medicine and cancer prevention as a part of Hackensack Meridian John Theurer Cancer Center. The center is a part of the National Cancer Institute-designated Lombardi Cancer Center at Hackensack University Medical Center and Georgetown University.

The spotiearly’s early cancer detection utilizes AI and trained dogs to address the cancer odor signatures through breath samples. The company is planning to announce its breath collection process, including an at-home face mask kit.

Emergence of the tech-solution in the healthcare sector

Approximately 40% of American citizens are under cancer treatment at some point in their lives. The collaboration plans to reduce the number of late-stage diagnoses and double the survival rate by providing patients with an accessible pathway to identify cancer early. Spotiearly has established a breath-related at-home test beginning with breast cancer that executes the olfactory potential of the trained canines, merged with its exclusive LUCID AI platform, to evaluate and address cancer odor signatures visible in patients’ volatile organic compounds.

Only one in seven cancers is identified by a recommended screening test, according to the research from the University of Chicago in 2022. Following this, the CEO of Spotiearly, Shlomi Madar, said, “Less than 15% of all the US-based cancers are treated via the recommended screening tool. The collaboration with Hackensack Meridian Health is a first initiative towards expanding access to technology in the United States.”

Research in lane

The research collaboration will start with the introduction of the PINK study with a 2000 participant multicentre study. The double-blind observational study will aim on breast cancer detection. The trial will employ 500 women with biopsies or mammograms, freshly activated for breast cancer detection at Hackensack Meridian Health.

This study will be led by Dr. Elias Obeid, a breast cancer and cancer genetics specialist and the medical director of the Hennessy Institute. He commented, “The early detection is crucial in the struggle against breast cancer.” The physician in chief and vice president of oncology at Hackensack Meridian John Theurer Cancer Center, Dr. Andre Goy, also stressed the concern for the limited access to the screening test.