INESC TEC’s Post

🌟 Yesterday, on February 4th, we marked World Cancer Day. A day to reflect on the global impact of cancer, a disease claiming the lives of approximately 8 million people annually. Many of these losses can be averted through prevention, early detection, and effective treatment. At INESC TEC, we are passionately dedicated to establishing robust research initiatives leveraging artificial intelligence to enhance the diagnosis and management of cancer. I'm thrilled to share that we are embarking on a new European project, the first one coordinated by us under the Horizon Europe framework in the health sector. This initiative aims to develop AI methods specifically tailored for respiratory diseases, with lung cancer being a use case. Our commitment at INESC TEC extends to tackling solutions for various cancers, including breast, lung, colorectal, prostate, pancreas, esophagus/stomach, cervical, bladder, and neuroblastoma. Our endeavors predominantly involve cutting-edge applications in image analysis. Let's work towards a future where preventable losses are minimized, and more lives are saved. 🌐💙 #CancerResearch #ArtificialIntelligence #HorizonEurope #HealthTech #INESCTEC #WorldCancerDay

📢 Exciting News! Our latest research, titled "Safety of treating acute pulmonary embolism at home: an individual patient data meta-analysis" has just been published in the European Heart Journal! 🎉 In this IPDMA, we found that the incidence of adverse events in home-treated PE patients, selected by a validated triage tool, was very low. Patients with cancer had a three- to five-fold higher incidence of adverse events and death. Patients with increased troponin or (NT-pro)BNP had a three-fold higher risk of adverse events, driven by recurrent venous thromboembolism and bleeding. Many thanks to all co-authors involved in this project: Delphine Douillet, Kim Luijken, Cecile Tromeur, Andrea Penaloza, Olivier Hugli, Drahomir Aujesky, Stefano Barco, Joseph R Bledsoe, Kyle Chang, Francis COUTURAUD, Paul den Exter, Carme Font, Menno Huisman, David Jimenez, Christopher Kabrhel, Jeffrey Kline, Prof.Dr.Stavros Konstantinides, Thijs van Mens, Remedios Otero, W Frank Peacock, Olivier Sanchez, William B Stubblefield, Luca Valerio, David R Vinson, Philip Wells, Maarten van Smeden, Pierre-Marie Roy, Erik Klok Read the full article here: https://lnkd.in/eJqBPr68 #Research #PulmonaryEmbolism #HomeTreatment #TriageTools #EuropeanHeartJournal

This morning at the Alzheimer's Association® International Conference (AAIC) 2024 in Philadelphia, we presented data from a recent study that further demonstrates the high accuracy of our blood tests incorporating the ALZpath Inc. proprietary pTau217 antibody for Alzheimer’s disease diagnosis.   Our latest study, involving over 50,000 samples from 40 cohort studies, highlights the precision of the pTau217 antibody in determining amyloid burden across all stages of Alzheimer’s disease progression. This supports early detection, treatment, and tracking.   "The need for accurate and convenient testing methods, such as blood tests, has never been more evident," says Chad Holland, CEO of ALZpath. Our pTau217 antibody is a game-changer, offering a less invasive and more accessible alternative to traditional diagnostic methods. Read the full press release here: https://lnkd.in/gFjhVS3C   To learn more about ALZpath and our innovative solutions, visit https://alzpath.bio/ and follow us here on LinkedIn for the latest updates.   #Alzheimers #AlzheimersResearch #AAIC2024 #HealthcareInnovation #BloodTests #EarlyDetection #pTau217

Interesting news from the NHS England GRAIL Galleri test in the UK - accuracy in the article given as 56% One of the main issues I think with Galleri is its model trained on late stage disease, and is a “fixed” panel. By comparison look at the recent results from Guardant Health and Exact Sciences where their CRC early detection assays pushed > 80% accuracy (COI - I am co-I in Guardant Health CORRECT-MRD-1) We need broader WG assays trained on early disease - we are developing a Nanopore assay with Isidro Cortés Ciriano which combines SNV, CNV, SV, Fragmentomics, Motif analysis and epigenetics (5-mC and 5-hMC) to build the best model possible. https://lnkd.in/eF8QN-q4

Spending on health is an investment in the future: cost for treatment of #colorectalcancer in stage 1 is approximately 4 000€, cost of treatment in stage 4 is around 40 000€. That is why investment in screening and awareness campaigns such as #ECCAM2024 make economic sense: https://lnkd.in/dKKKfktt #Vision4Health #ConfHealthUnion24 Digestive Cancers Europe

South-East Asia is witnessing remarkable advancements in #HepatocellularCarcinoma (HCC) diagnosis and treatment, promising enhanced patient outcomes. Innovations like liquid biopsy and advanced imaging are improving early detection, while targeted therapies and immunotherapy offer new hope in treatment. The move towards minimally invasive interventions and multi-disciplinary care underscores a holistic approach to combating this challenging disease. #HCCAdvancements #HealthcareInnovation #TargetedTherapy #Immunotherapy #PatientCare For more details, check out the full article on GRG Health. https://lnkd.in/dTMF233s

I take Today the opportunity to warmly thank Mr István Ujhelyi, Member of the European Parliament (MEP Lung Health Group), and Dr. Anne-Marie Baird, President of Lung Cancer Europe (LuCE) who gave me the possibility to be one voice of patients with regards to this sensitive topic of financial toxicity brought by the Lung Cancer. Cancer is not only a deadly thread; it is a thief that spoils your life and well-being (spiritual and material). Even if we can state a lot a progress was achieved in the research and drugs, Lung Cancer remains a disease with poor prognosis in terms of life expectancy … - 50% of people with cancer still live 12 months after being diagnosed, the median survival is 12 months, - Only 4% of those diagnosed with stage 4 cancer (~45%) are still living beyond five years. Lung cancer patients should remain focused on finding ways and strengths to cure without worrying about any financial implication. Today it is clear that they (we) must carry a double burden. #Lung Cancer Europe #Patients en Réseau #

The May 2024 issue of NEJM Catalyst Innovations in Care Delivery includes articles, case studies, and research reports on a variety of timely and important topics: climate change, integrating AI to improve clinical note quality, the U.S. Center for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation Center’s new quality initiative, cancer care in rural settings, lung cancer screening in urban systems, overdose prevention centers in the U.S., and focused care teams for alcohol-related conditions in the U.K. Read or listen to our letter from the editors to learn more: https://nej.md/4cSmkVY

Identifying Alzheimer’s disease (AD) during the pre-clinical stage remains a challenge, but we’re finding hope in precision medicine to slow or even prevent the disease up to 20 years before symptoms appear. Watch to learn how #MyCompany is using digital, blood, and imaging biomarkers to help us identify the disease in its earliest stages and improve patient outcomes for those living with AD.   If you’re curious about biomarkers in early intervention of disease, I encourage you to read my blog post – and let me know what you think about the future of AD research in the comments: https://bit.ly/44DiXNu     #ENDALZ #AlzheimersDisease #MyCompany #AlzheimersDiseaseMonth