Artificial Intelligence in Lung Cancer Imaging: Unfolding the Future

Abstract

Lung cancer is one of the malignancies with higher morbidity and mortality. Imaging plays an essential role in each phase of lung cancer management, from detection to assessment of response to treatment. The development of imaging-based artificial intelligence (AI) models has the potential to play a key role in early detection and customized treatment planning. Computer-aided detection of lung nodules in screening programs has revolutionized the early detection of the disease. Moreover, the possibility to use AI approaches to identify patients at risk of developing lung cancer during their life can help a more targeted screening program. The combination of imaging features and clinical and laboratory data through AI models is giving promising results in the prediction of patients' outcomes, response to specific therapies, and risk for toxic reaction development. In this review, we provide an overview of the main imaging AI-based tools in lung cancer imaging, including automated lesion detection, characterization, segmentation, prediction of outcome, and treatment response to provide radiologists and clinicians with the foundation for these applications in a clinical scenario.

Keywords: artificial intelligence; deep learning; lung cancer.

Figure 1

Example of computed aided detection with automatic identification of pulmonary nodules, both visible on axial CT images and in the volumetric reconstruction.

Figure 2

Example of automated segmentation of a pulmonary lesion located in the upper lower lobe, with automated calculation of the lesion volume, visible also as a 3D reconstruction.

Figure 3

Flowchart showing all the possibilities that AI tools allow for lung cancer, for better and more personalized patient management.