Science does not go on vacation

Medical presentation in a lecture hall. On the screen, a slide titled “SegmentAnyMuscle” and the DukeHealth logo. A colorful illustration of human muscles and MRI images of the neck, chest, abdomen, thigh, knee, and foot are visible. The presenter points to the slide. In the background, audience members are seated, visible from behind.
The WUM 2nd Department of Radiology held an unusual meeting, welcoming Professor Maciej Mazurowski, a globally-renowned expert on AI in medicine, head of the Duke Center for Artificial Intelligence in Radiology.

How artificial intelligence algorithms can help radiology

WUM and hospital staff as well as students on internships and interested in new technologies and medicine, could all listen to a fascinating talk about the latest trends in artificial intelligence and the applications of foundation models in radiology.

Foundation models are advanced artificial intelligence algorithms trained on vast, diversified sets of data. This allows them to learn universal representations, and they can be successfully adapted for various tasks, which eliminates the need to train them from scratch for every problem. For radiology, this means better segmentation, classification and predictions, also in rare clinical cases. 

The collaboration between the WUM and Duke University

Professor Mazurowski cut his own vacation short especially for us, and directly after sightseeing around Warsaw, came to the lecture hall at the UCC WUM hospital to share the results of his research. That includes the Human Body Project, aimed at creating a comprehensive foundation model for the human body, based on radiological data – which could potentially bring significant improvements in diagnostics and treatment personalization.

The lecture, which attracted many, was followed by an inspiring discussion with the audience. 

Krzysztof Bartnik, PhD, the initiator of the visit, emphasized the following: 

“Our continued cooperation with the Professor and his team is critical for the development of our research into AI in radiology. Together with teams from Duke University and the Warsaw University of Technology, we submitted a grant proposal (SONATINA, the National Science Centre), which was accepted! We will work on AI tools that support forecasting the efficacy of treatment for abdominal cavity neoplasms, based on the advanced analysis of radiological imaging. We hope that this visit marks the beginning of a successful long-term cooperation between Duke and WUM!”.

 

A man in a blue shirt presents “The Human Body Project.” A white skeleton and a medical device are visible on the screen. There are seven people in the room. The room is bright, with white walls.
A man wearing glasses speaks to an audience seated in chairs.
A man wearing glasses and a man giving a lecture are talking at a lectern. In the background, there is a presentation on the screen.
A woman speaking to a group of listeners.
A lecture hall filled with students, a man standing in front of them, and a presentation on a large screen.
Several people are sitting with their backs to the camera in a bright room. In the foreground is a woman in a white blouse with frills. Next to her is a person in a blue T-shirt, followed by a woman in a white blouse with a blue pattern. In the background are blurred decorations and a bright wall.
A group of people are sitting in a conference room, facing a speaker who is off-camera. They are dressed casually. Some of them are applauding. In the background, there are light-colored walls and doors.