How AI is helping Goa detect, treat oral cancer patients
The project is powered by the AI-based oral cancer screening tool Aarogya Aarohan, developed by the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru. “The mobile-based tool will be used to click photographs of the oral cavity and detect abnormalities such as ulcers. Patients flagged as high-risk, based on certain readings such as the type and colour of ulcer, will be referred to dentists for further examination via telemedicine. If the need arises, patients may be referred to the Goa Dental College for a biopsy,” said an official from the DHS.
Aarogya Aarohan was launched around two months ago at the Panaji urban health centre and the primary health centre in Betki, with plans to cover more locations. Goa has 40 healthcare centres—two district hospitals, two sub-district hospitals, four urban health centres, six community health centres and the rest primary health centres.
“Traditionally, screening is done through oral visual examination to detect for redness, white patches, ulcer or growth in the oral cavity We also use an additional screening tool to capture images and detect anomalies,” said another official.
The tool is used for those visiting the two health centres and also deployed by frontline health workers during house visits. An ‘orange’ screen is generated as a prompt in case of abnormalities. In case no referrals are needed, the screen gives a ‘blue’ prompt.
The app-based service has so far screened around 259 individuals in Goa, of which 114 were found to be suspicious cases. Eight were confirmed as patients of oral cancer.
The India rollout of the screening tool has taken place in Thanjavur (Tamil Nadu), Mathura (Uttar Pradesh) and Goa, with plans to launch it at two more places, including Nagaland. If feasible, it is planned for integration into the National Programme for Prevention and Control of Non-Communicable Diseases and made available as a digital public tool.
Developed by IISc’s AI centre of excellence TANUH (Translational Artificial Intelligence for Networked Universal Health Care) in collaboration with IISc’s ARTPARK (an AI and robotics technology initiative) and AI solutions brand Triveous, Aarogya Aarohan is described as a point-of-care, AI-empowered, white-light, mobile phone-based tool for the early detection of oral potentially malignant disorders (OPMD) and oral cancers. The project was funded, among others, by the Union ministry of education under the AI Centres of Excellence Programme.
Aarogya Aarohan uses images captured in white light on a mobile phone to instantly classify lesions as suspicious (that requires referral to a dentist) or non-suspicious, even in offline conditions. It is said to be the only tool of its kind globally that provides instant results at the point of care without requiring an internet connection. It has received a test licence from the government’s Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) and is in the process of obtaining a marketing licence.
Officials said they were planning to step up use of the tool to other primary health centres in Goa.
Oral cancer accounts for around a third of all cancers in India and the world. India sees over 140,000 new cases and 80,000 deaths annually. Around 70 per cent of oral cancers are detected only at advanced stages due to lack of awareness and poor access to specialists, especially in rural areas.
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