Dell Technologies and University of Limerick join forces using AI to advance predictive and diagnostic cancer research

Dell Technologies has joined forces with the University of Limerick’s Digital Cancer Research Centre to develop an artificial intelligence (AI) platform and digital twin technology to power predictive and diagnostic research in oncology.

The technology can help clinicians provide more effective cancer care for those with B-cell lymphoma from speeding diagnosis to providing enhanced treatment and improving long-term outcomes for patients in Ireland and worldwide.

Dell created an AI platform for the University that delivers high performance computing power to accelerate oncology and precision medicine research. The platform sits within the Digital Cancer Centre’s multicloud ecosystem. It is powered by Dell’s latest storage arrays and Dell PowerEdge servers optimised for AI to produce cancer patient digital twins for better diagnostics.

With the new AI platform, researchers can:

—  Rapidly accelerate biomarker testing for cancer,
—  Gain a better understanding of how to treat patients with B-cell lymphoma, and
—  Develop personalised therapies based on a person’s tumour characteristics.

By using emerging technologies, researchers at the Digital Pathology Unit at the University of Limerick’s Digital Cancer Research Centre can also better understand the pathogenesis of these malignancies and develop novel therapeutic approaches.

The researchers are particularly interested in the possibility that collagen within the tumour ‘microenvironment’ can cause the cancerous cells to spread around the body and to the central nervous system. Having already identified novel ways to block collagen, the research could lead to new treatments to cure patients before the tumour spreads.

Professor of Molecular Pathology at University of Limerick and Director of the Digital Pathology Unit at the Digital Cancer Research Centre Paul Murray said: “Through our partnership with the Dell Technologies team, we will be able to advance our knowledge of how cells go wrong during cancer development and find new ways to diagnose and treat cancer patients.

This is the beginning of a very exciting research project for the team here at the University of Limerick’s Digital Cancer Research Centre, and we’re looking forward to accelerating this project with the digital support and insights from the team at Dell Technologies.”

Catherine Doyle, Managing Director of Dell Technologies, Ireland, said: “The new AI-driven platform developed by Dell Technologies will ultimately help researchers and healthcare professionals deliver precision treatments for patients with B-cell lymphoma by understanding how it develops.

Through the creation of these digital twins, the University of Limerick and Dell are taking clinical research to a new level. Together, we are harnessing the power of data through new technologies to benefit patients and healthcare professionals globally.”

Details on the University of Limerick’s Digital Cancer Research Centre can be found at https://www.ul.ie/limerick-dcrc.