University of Limerick and  Dell team up to use AI for cancer research

University of Limerick has teamed up with Dell to use AI for cancer research

University of Limerick and Dell Technologies have teamed up to develop an AI-powered platform to advance cancer research. They are hoping the move could help improve outcomes for cancer patients in Ireland and across the world. 

The new tech will help deliver "high performance computer power to accelerate oncology and precision medicine research." 

It can be used to provide care for those with B-cell lymphoma by speeding up diagnosis, providing enhanced treatement and improving long-term outcomes for patients. 

Researchers will be able to rapidly accelerate biomarker testing for cancer, get a "better understanding" on how to treat patients and also develop "personalised therapies" based on a person's tumour characteristics. 

By using this tech, researchers at the Digital Pathology unit at University of Limerick’s Digital Cancer Research Centre hope to "better understand the pathogenesis of these maligancies and develop novel therapeutic approaches." 

"The researchers are particularly interested in the possibility that collagen within the tumour ‘microenvironment’ can cause the cancerous cells to spread around the body and to the central nervous system. Having already identified novel ways to block collagen, the research could lead to new treatments to cure patients before the tumour spreads," the statement said. 

Professor of Molecular Pathology at UL and Director of the Digital Pathology Unit at the Digital Cancer Research Centre, Paul Murray said through this partnership, the team will "be able to advance our knowledge of how cells go wrong during cancer development and find new ways to diagnose and treat cancer patients."

Managing Director of Dell Ireland, Catherine Doyle said the "new AI-driven platform developed by Dell Technologies will ultimately help researchers and healthcare professionals deliver precision treatments for patients with B-cell lymphoma by understanding how it develops."

"Through the creation of these digital twins, the University of Limerick and Dell are taking clinical research to a new level. Together, we are harnessing the power of data through new technologies to benefit patients and healthcare professionals globally," she said.