AI will be used to predict radiotherapy outcomes for prostate cancer patients

The PROSECCA study, led by researchers at the Institute of Genetics and Cancer, will study data from up to 15,000 previously-treated prostate cancer patients in a bid to identify why some of them have a poor response to treatment or an increased risk of side effects to radiation.

The information will be used to develop a tool that helps predict a patient’s risk of side-effects after radiotherapy. 

Within the UK, there are 33 deaths every day from prostate cancer making it second only to lung cancer as the most common cause of cancer death in males.

Of the 55,000 new cases each year, up to 50% of patients will receive radiotherapy, either alone or after a prostatectomy.

Although there have been significant improvements in the accuracy of radiotherapy delivery, leading to better tumour targeting and a reduction in dose to normal tissues, significant permanent genitourinary or gastrointestinal-related side effects are all too common.  

Using artificial intelligence and machine learning, the PROSECCA (improving radiotherapy in PROState cancer using EleCtronic population-based healthCAre data) study will link primary, secondary and tertiary clinical data - including digital image information - with radiotherapy treatment plans and outcome data, to identify new predictive biomarkers of radiation response.

By helping to identify at-risk patients earlier, it will provide clinicians with a tool to individualise a radiotherapy dose and plan to maximise cure and minimise toxicity.