Jamia Millia Islamia develops world’s first Artificial Intelligence Driven Oral Cancer Database
A significant advancement in the field of Artificial Intelligence (AI) & digital pathology has emerged from the research team at Multidisciplinary Centre for Advanced Research & Studies (MCARS), Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI), who have developed a groundbreaking dataset designed to enhance the accuracy and efficiency of diagnosing oral submucous fibrosis (OSMF) and oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). The study, led by Ph.D. student Miss Nisha Chaudhary under the supervision of Dr. Tanveer Ahmad, is set to be published in Scientific Data, part of the prestigious Nature Publishing Group. This revolutionary AI tool was designed to accurately detect and monitor the progression of oral cancer through digital images, utilizing an extensive dataset of over 300,000 high-resolution tissue images with more than 1 million images screened.
ORCHID (Oral Cancer Histology Image Database) dataset, was created from the samples meticulously collected from hospitals across India, including Ranchi Institute of Medical Sciences, Jharkhand (under the supervision of Dr. Arpita Rai), All India Institute of Medical Sciences (under the supervision of Dr. Deepika Mishra), Maulana Azad Institute of Dental Sciences, New Delhi (under the supervision of Dr. Augustine), and Banaras Hindu University, Uttar Pradesh (under the supervision of Dr. Akhilesh Kumar). This monumental work is protected by two patents and has already garnered significant attention from researchers worldwide, eager to access this pioneering database and the programming codes that underpin the AI diagnostic tool. “Our dataset is a significant step towards making early diagnosis of oral cancer faster, more accurate, and accessible to everyone, especially in regions with limited pathology resources,” said Miss Nisha.
Dr. Tanveer Ahmad, the study’s senior author, emphasized the importance of this development, stating, “This is the first such extensive database in the world, and the response has been overwhelming. Researchers across the globe are requesting access to our database and AI tool to further their own studies in digital pathology.”
Dr. Akhilanand Chaurasia, MDS Oral Medicine & Radiology, KGMU and senior author of the study, highlighted the broader impact, saying, “AI and digital pathology have already transformed the world of oral cancer diagnosis, and the database our team has created will have a transformative impact on patients across the globe. We are proud that India is the first country in the world to have created such a comprehensive database, which includes high- resolution images, ensuring that the AI training and diagnostic tool is of the highest accuracy.”
Professor Mohammad Husain, Director of MCARS, JMI congratulated all the authors of the study and expressed pride in the achievement. He remarked, “This AI database will be useful for researchers across the globe, and we are proud that our researchers at MCARS, JMI have been the first to develop such a database and AI-based diagnostic tool.”
The study, titled “High-resolution AI image dataset for diagnosing oral submucous fibrosis and squamous cell carcinoma” marks a significant milestone in the journey toward integrating AI into routine clinical diagnostics, especially in resource-constrained settings where timely diagnosis is vital. The researchers at Jamia Millia Islamia have not only set a new standard for cancer diagnostics but have also opened up new avenues for research and innovation in the fight against oral cancer.
