The Cambridge-based start-up, Lucida Medical, has recently achieved a significant milestone in the field of medical technology. Their Prostate Intelligence (Pi) technology, an AI-based software, has been granted a CE mark, paving the way for its use across healthcare systems in the UK and Europe. This cutting-edge software aims to significantly improve the process of diagnosing prostate cancer, a disease that claims 375,000 lives annually and is notoriously challenging to diagnose.
Currently, MRI scans are the primary imaging technique used for diagnosing prostate cancer. However, a crucial clinical study indicates that significant prostate cancers are missed by radiologists using MRI in 12% of cases. Additionally, 55% of patients without significant cancer are referred for painful and costly biopsies. Lucida Medical’s Pi software could potentially reduce these percentages, as data presented to the European Society for Urogenital Radiology (ESUR) in September showed that the software could help cut undetected cancers to six per cent while reducing avoidable biopsies to 43 per cent.
Dr Antony Rix, CEO and co-founder of Lucida Medical, expressed his excitement over the CE certification, stating that Pi is now the leading platform to support prostate cancer diagnosis with MRI. He noted that its integration with radiologists’ workflows and its unprecedented accuracy in real-world validation could significantly improve patient outcomes and reduce costs and waiting times in health systems.
Given the expected shortfall of radiologists in the UK by 40% by 2027, the need for streamlined, simplified, and accurate means of diagnosing cancer has become more critical than ever. The Pi software addresses this need by using artificial intelligence to analyze an MRI scan and integrate it into the radiologist’s workflow. This integration helps reduce time for radiologists while improving diagnostic accuracy.
Prostate cancer affects millions globally, with 1.4 million diagnoses each year. The software’s capabilities could revolutionize the treatment of prostate cancer by providing accurate risk predictions, calculating volumes of organs and suspected cancers, and outputting 3D visualizations to support biopsy and treatment. Despite this, the software is not currently for sale in the US.
Lucida Medical has plans to extend its technology to aid diagnosis of other cancers as well. The company has already demonstrated that it can be extended to lung, liver, and bone cancers, and plans to secure further regulatory approvals during 2024-25.
Lucida Medical is backed by investors including XTX Ventures and Prostate Cancer Research, along with leading radiologists and urologists. The company collaborated with GE HealthCare on the software in 2021 and is now piloting it in the UK, Germany, and Italy, while building partnerships with hospitals and vendors across Europe.
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