With 7k women, Mumbai's KEM Hospital starts BMC's largest and most expensive clinical trial for breast cancer diagnosis
The trial, which will last for 12 to 28 months, involves a small, portable device with a high-resolution thermal sensor powered by artificial intelligence. The hospital has also started a dedicated 15-bed ward for all breast-related ailments, 14 years after starting the city's first breast clinic at a civic hospital.
Unlike traditional mammography, the machine in trial involves no physical contact or breast compression, eliminating the discomfort associated with X-ray-based screening.
During the procedure, the patient is alone in a private room, seated at a fixed distance from the thermal imaging device with curtains for privacy.
The exact costs were unavailable until press time, but hospital officials said this is the largest BMC-funded trial. The machine, developed by Bangalore-based NIRAMAI Health Analytix, costs Rs 50 lakh and has taken up residence free of cost at KEM Hospital as part of a clinical validation under BMC's startup incubation programme.
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"We are moving forward with it only on the condition that the machine will remain at KEM Hospital if trials show favourable results," said Dr Shilpa Rao, associate professor at KEM's general surgery department, who is also the principal investigator for the trial.
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She added that thermal imaging has been around since the 2000s, but it detects any source of heat, including infections and inflammation, which can lead to false positives.
"This can result in unnecessary psychological distress and economic burden for patients," said Dr Rao.
In this case, the machine uses AI to scan heat patterns on the chest, looking over 400,000 tiny temperature points to detect any unusual changes. The report comes back in 24 hours, and the algorithm produces a breast health score that tells doctors if it is malignant, benign, or requires further evaluation.
Everyone taking part in the trial will get all three tests: a mammogram, an ultrasound, and the AI-powered scan.
Doctors will then compare the results to see how well the new technology works.
Dr Rao was also struggling to have a dedicated ward for breast treatment since 2010. "Perhaps having a woman as a dean made the difference now," she said.
KEM Dean Dr Sangeeta Ravat said, "The issue is very close to my heart, and breast cancer patients need a special ward as they are already immunocompromised. There were some problems; it couldn't happen before, but now they have been resolved," she said.
Dr Varsha Kulkarni, Department Head of General Surgery, who was instrumental in having the ward up and running, said, "Women's health needs priority."
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