Researchers Develop AI Method to Identify Bevacizumab Responders in Advanced Bowel Cancer

# Researchers Develop AI Method to Identify Bevacizumab Responders in Advanced Bowel Cancer Scientists at the Institute of Cancer Research in London and the RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences in Dublin developed a method to identify patients most likely to benefit from bevacizumab.

The team published research in the journal Scientific Reports. The work was funded by the EU Horizon 2020, Research Ireland, the Ian Harty Charitable Trust, and the Institute of Cancer Research.

Bevacizumab was approved in December for treating advanced bowel cancer on the NHS. Bevacizumab slows the growth of cancer. The drug only works for a small group of patients and carries the risk of serious side effects including high blood pressure, gastrointestinal problems, and blood clots.

Nearly 10,000 cases of advanced bowel cancer are diagnosed in England each year. The team studied 117 European patients who had been treated with bevacizumab and chemotherapy. The team used an artificial intelligence tool called PhenMap developed at the Institute of Cancer Research.

AI Tool Integrates Tumor Genetics and Clinical Data PhenMap is short for phenotype mapping.

PhenMap integrates complex data on the genetic make-up of the tumour with clinical information including gender, age, and which side the tumour was on. PhenMap searches for new biological signals as patterns relevant to a patient’s response to bevacizumab. PhenMap can pick up more complicated patterns and narrow these groups, putting patients on a scale of one to 100.

Anguraj Sadanandam is professor in stratification and precision medicine at the Institute of Cancer Research. Kristian Helin is chief executive of the Institute of Cancer Research.

Experts Discuss Research Implications Anguraj Sadanandam said: “Once bowel cancer spreads to other parts of the body, there are very few treatment options available for patients.

It is therefore positive that patients can now access the targeted drug bevacizumab on the NHS. However, we know that the majority of patients won’t benefit from the drug, meaning thousands of people in England could be facing unpleasant side effects unnecessarily. Until now, we haven’t been able to identify these patients.

” Anguraj Sadanandam said the findings will need to be validated in a larger cohort to ensure they are applicable to all patients. Kristian Helin said: “The approval of new drugs to treat cancers is a significant milestone, but we must recognise that one drug won’t work for everyone – understanding why certain patients won’t benefit from the treatment is crucial to improving outcomes.

AI has revolutionised cancer research – by enabling us to rapidly analyse large, complex datasets and predict how patients will respond to treatment.

This research is a powerful example of how the ICR is leveraging AI to develop smarter, kinder therapies and deliver them to patients sooner.