An artificial intelligence (AI) algorithm developed by researchers at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) shows promise in accelerating clinical trial enrollment by efficiently matching patients to relevant studies. The AI, named TrialGPT, analyzes patient summaries and identifies suitable clinical trials listed on ClinicalTrials.gov, potentially reducing the time clinicians spend on screening and improving access for patients. The findings were published in Nature Communications.
TrialGPT: How it Works
TrialGPT leverages large language models (LLMs) to streamline clinical trial matching. The algorithm processes patient summaries, including medical history and demographic information, and then searches ClinicalTrials.gov to identify trials for which the patient is eligible. It excludes trials for which the patient is ineligible and provides an annotated list of trials ranked by relevance and eligibility, along with explanations of how the patient meets the enrollment criteria.
According to Stephen Sherry, PhD, Acting Director of the National Library of Medicine, "This study shows we can responsibly leverage AI technology so physicians can connect their patients to a relevant clinical trial that may be of interest to them with even more speed and efficiency."
Accuracy and Efficiency
To assess TrialGPT's accuracy, researchers compared its performance to that of three human clinicians in evaluating over 1,000 patient-criterion pairs. The results showed that TrialGPT achieved a similar level of accuracy as the clinicians. Furthermore, a pilot user study revealed that clinicians using TrialGPT spent 40% less time screening patients while maintaining the same degree of accuracy.
Potential Impact on Clinical Trial Recruitment
Clinical trials are essential for advancing medical knowledge and improving patient care. However, identifying suitable trials for interested volunteers can be a time-consuming and resource-intensive process. TrialGPT has the potential to significantly reduce this burden, allowing clinicians to focus on other critical tasks.
Zhiyong Lu, PhD, Study Corresponding Author and Senior Investigator at the National Library of Medicine, stated, "Our study shows that TrialGPT could help clinicians connect their patients to clinical trial opportunities more efficiently and save precious time that can be better spent on harder tasks that require human expertise."
Future Directions
The research team has received The Director’s Challenge Innovation Award to further evaluate TrialGPT's effectiveness and fairness in real-world clinical settings. The researchers believe that this tool can improve clinical trial recruitment and lower obstacles to participation for underrepresented populations in clinical research.
