CTV News: “Researchers use AI to speed up endometriosis diagnoses in Canada”
Several ob-gyn faculty members spoke to CTV News about a new endometriosis app, called DANA. Trained on anonymized clinical data, the app uses a chatbot to interview patients and assess symptoms, identify patterns and generate a personalized report to help them obtain specialist referrals.
“The goal of DANA is to develop a tool that will actually talk to the patients and try to put them in front of the right specialist on the first or second attempt,” said Nucelio Lemos, a professor in the department and co-creator of the app. (Dafna Sussman, also a co-creator, is cross-appointed to U of T ob-gyn as an associate professor.)
Endometriosis is a chronic inflammatory condition where tissue similar to that found in the uterine lining grows elsewhere in the body. It’s one most prevalent gynaecological conditions, affecting approximately one million Canadians.
It can present with a number of symptoms — among them cramps, chronic pelvic pain and heavy bleeding — and can be difficult for primary health-care providers to diagnosis. For context, Lemos noted there are 150 conditions that can cause chronic pelvic pain.
The article says it can take an average of five to ten years for a patient to receive a proper diagnosis. The app could potentially cut this time by 80 per cent by reducing the number of specialists a woman will see (upwards of fourteen) and eliminating unnecessary tests and treatment.
Jonathon Solnik, a professor in the department, said that among ob-gyns — already in short supply — there are few who specialize in endometriosis care.
“OBGYNs are good at managing endometriosis, but it’s when it’s in more advanced forms, that’s when it becomes more problematic (…) so, the shortage is also really in areas where the endometriosis is in an advanced form, but we see so many people in an advanced form because they’ve had such long delays.”
That article also mentions redressing this issue through legislation, such as the federal government’s recently introduced Bill S-243 to establish a national framework for women’s health.
Lemos is a gynaecologic surgeon at Mount Sinai Hospital. Solnik is head of gynaecology and minimally invasive surgery at Mount Sinai Hospital and chief of gynaecology at Women’s College Hospital. Sussman is associate professor of biomedical engineering at Toronto Metropolitan University and a scientist at St. Michael’s Hospital.
Editor's note: A correction was made to Dafna Sussman's professorial rank. She is cross-appointed as an associate professor at U of T.
