The Paige Breast Lymph Node is designed to help pathologists detect breast cancer that has spread to the lymph nodes.
Cancer screening is critical for the early detection of potentially life-threatening malignancies.but research shows The number of licensed pathologists available to diagnose cancer has been steadily declining, falling by nearly 18% over a decade. This, in turn, creates opportunities for companies using AI to try and close the gap, while also improving cancer detection and assessment.
Headquartered in New York City on Thursday Pagea startup spun out of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center to provide AI-based diagnostic software, roll out Its latest product, Paige Breast Lymph nodes. Artificial intelligence software helps pathologists detect breast cancer that has spread to lymph nodes.
When breast cancer spreads or metastasizes, it usually invades lymph nodes — structures that are part of the body’s immune system — and some other organs or areas of the body, such as the lungs and bones. Paige’s software is designed to find cancer in lymph nodes that might otherwise be missed, including tiny collections of cancer cells called micrometastases.
The findings are then displayed at the individual node level using Paige’s proprietary TissueMap. This highlights all areas of suspected cancer, according to the company.
“We know that it is difficult for pathologists to find small metastases, which is a tedious and time-consuming task,” Juan Retamero, MD, PhD, Paige’s medical director, said in an email provided by the representative. “The Paige breast lymph node is designed to detect small tumor deposits, helping pathologists be more efficient and safer in this regard.”
Paige’s technology, which was presented at the American and Canadian Society of Pathology (USCAP) annual meeting, is currently only available for research in the US, but the digital pathology company is actively pursuing the software in the US, EU and UK, Retamero said.
Company officials emphasized that the technology is designed to assist pathologists, not replace their assessments.
“The key concept here is the technology to assist the pathologist as a diagnostic aid that goes hand in hand with the pathologist’s interpretive review,” Retamero said.
Paige Breast Lymph Node uses the same underlying AI technology as the company FDA authorization Paige Prostate. This is designed to identify acinar adenocarcinoma, a type of cancer that forms glands in the prostate, and to highlight for pathologists the areas of the prostate that are most likely to carry cancer, Retamero explained.
Like Page’s breast lymph nodes, Page’s prostate “can serve as a second pair of eyes for the pathologist, helping them see small areas of cancer that might otherwise be missed,” he said.
Other companies are also using AI to assist clinicians and pathology researchers. Path AIFor example, AI-driven technology and machine learning are provided to help doctors make accurate cancer diagnoses, and pathologists can also get AI decision support wild goat Help make accurate, timely and personalized cancer diagnoses.
Paige has raised $170 million since its founding in 2017. These include a $100 million Series C round last year, a $45 million Series B round in 2019, and a $25 million Series A round in 2018. The Series C round was completed in January 2021 and was led by Casdin Capital and Johnson & Johnson Innovation – JJDC, Inc. (JJDC), Johnson & Johnson’s strategic venture capital arm.
Photo: belchonock, Getty Images
