A recent peer-reviewed study has highlighted the positive impact of Perimeter Medical Imaging AI’s artificial intelligence technology on improving outcomes for breast cancer surgery. The study demonstrated that when integrated with wide field optical coherence tomography (WF-OCT), Perimeter’s ImgAssist software enhanced productivity and decision making in surgery margin assessments. The deep learning model used in the study showed impressive levels of sensitivity and specificity, accurately identifying 96.8% of pathology-positive margins.
These results suggest that AI-enhanced margin visualization using WF-OCT could potentially reduce re-operation rates in breast cancer surgery by effectively identifying residual tumors. Perimeter’s Chief Executive Officer, Adrian Mendes, emphasized the company’s advancements in AI technology, citing a large dataset of proprietary images and tailored AI models designed for real-time applications in healthcare settings. Mendes highlighted the potential of these advancements to improve surgical outcomes and expand the company’s reach into other tissue types beyond breast cancer.
Additionally, a multi-center, randomized clinical trial at Baylor College of Medicine in Texas is currently evaluating the use of Perimeter B-Series OCT combined with ImgAssist during breast conservation surgery, with a planned interim analysis set for the second quarter and study completion expected by the end of 2024. The World Health Organization reports that breast cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related death among women globally and is the most common cancer in 109 countries. This underscores the importance of early-stage breast cancer management, which often involves breast-conserving surgery to remove tumors with clear margins while preserving the aesthetic quality of the breast.
However, reliance on permanent histopathology for margin assessment, a process that can take days, may contribute to a significant rate of re-operations due to positive margins. This can lead to increased patient anxiety, higher morbidity, and elevated healthcare costs. Data from the US National Surgical Quality Improvement Program indicates a higher rate of post-lumpectomy re-operations for breast cancer patients compared to other organs, with many patients undergoing secondary excision operations to reduce the risk of cancer recurrence. Mendes underscored the importance of improving breast cancer surgery margin assessment in light of these statistics.
