Using space technology to beat bowel cancer

At the UCL Faculty of Medical Sciences, we are a global leader in cancer research. UCL spinout Odin Vision has invented a novel bowel cancer diagnostic system that is being trialled in the NHS.

Bowel cancer is the second largest cause of cancer-related deaths in the UK. But with early diagnosis, nearly everyone survives. Traditional colonoscopy methods can make detection difficult, and up to 25% of pre-cancerous polyps are missed.

Odin Vision assesses real-time video of colonoscopies using artificial intelligence (AI) to detect and characterise polyps. Secure, high-speed satellite communications upload the video to the cloud so the system can be used in hospitals wherever they are in the world.

Advances in AI mean it is a boon for doctors, supporting them with their cancer diagnoses. The team behind Odin Vision is part of the Wellcome / EPSRC Centre for Interventional and Surgical Sciences (WEISS) at UCL. WEISS comprises experts from the UCL faculties of Medical Sciences and Engineering whose remit is to use engineering solutions to benefit patients. Odin Vision is supported by UCL Business, part of UCL Innovation & Enterprise.

Odin Vision has recently won a grant from the NHS, which will fast-track their life-saving technology into selected hospitals in the UK.

Further reading
Using space technology to fight bowel cancer