SAN ANTONIO – Watson for Oncology or WFO, is the clinical cousin of the IBM-created cognitive computing system best known as the machine that defeated all-time champions on the TV quiz show “Jeopardy!”
WFO, however, has the much more important function of providing oncologists with evidence-based support for clinical decisions. Data being presented here at the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium show that in Bangalore, India, where WFO is used in a large hospital system, there is good concordance between tumor board recommendations and WFO’s recommendations about the treatment of breast cancer, although much more work needs to be done. The investigators emphasize that WFO is a highly useful tool that can augment but will not replace clinical judgment, and can never replace the physician-patient relationship.
In this video interview, Andrew Norden, MD, deputy chief health officer for the IBM Watson project, based in Cambridge, Mass., describes how Watson for Oncology works, and how different versions of the Watson platform are being used in medicine throughout the world.