Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare
The technological development within artificial Intelligence (AI) has been tremendously strong in recent years. Modern AI is a toolbox that fits perfectly into the healthcare vision of precision medicine, the fully tailored treatment for each patient. However, few AI solutions have so far reached actual practice. The reason is that the transition from experimental results to clinical routine involves many challenges. Even the most powerful algorithms need to be carefully placed in a context with innovations in workflows and interaction to be useful.
The Arena
Analytic Imaging Diagnostics Arena (AIDA) is a national arena for research and innovation in medical image analysis. AIDA’s goal is to develop AI-based solutions for decision support in imaging diagnostics that reach all the way to clinical use. An fundamental insight is that this complex challenge requires collaboration that is both multidisciplinary and spans different sectors.
Most of AIDA’s resources are used for projects that develop AI-based decision support. These are driven by research groups within industry and academia across Sweden, in collaboration with healthcare providers. More than 100 innovation projects are ongoing or have been completed under the AIDA umbrella. Perhaps even more important is the meeting place aspect in the core environment, where workshops and meetings are often organized providing valuable knowledge and exchanges. To give healthcare the proper knowledge base to drive AI development in the most effective direction, AIDA offers various forms of continuing education.
The Data Hub
Another pillar within AIDA is the AIDA Data Hub. AI innovation based on large amounts of medical data, which often constitutes sensitive personal data, places great demands on the systems used for storage and computation. Such computing power and high security level are beyond what most research groups can handle alone. The AIDA Data Hub has invested in a highly capable platform available to researchers and innovators from academia, healthcare, and industry across the country. In addition to the system, support is also offered to AI development projects.
To develop AI innovations, large amounts of relevant data from healthcare are required. However, there is often great uncertainty about how this is done correctly and responsibly as well as practical challenges. The Data Hub supports data sharing in various ways, partly through a service whrer Swedish researchers can easily provide access to their data, and partly through guidance on policy issues.
A data set shared in AIDA's Data Hub. The images show histology samples of breast cancer.
How to get Involved with AIDA
All companies, academic groups and health care providers interested in AI in diagnostic imaging are welcome to join AIDA. There are many possibilities to formal AIDA efforts with partial funding. But you can join also without defined project ideas as a Network partner (full description here), and among other benefits take part of the knowledge exchange and shared data sources within AIDA.
You can read more about how to apply for projects and fellowships on the Medtech4Health site https://medtech4health.se/aida-arena/
AIDA is an initiative within the strategic innovation program Medtech4Health, a joint effort by VINNOVA, Formas and the Swedish Energy Agency.
