Technology isn’t a one trick pony, it has an infinite amount of possibilities on how it can be implemented. As technology continues to evolve, the ways it would impact the fight against cancer by improving cancer research, it would create better alternatives or improve our current ways to treat cancer, and our ability to detect and prevent different kinds of cancer will get better.

First, as technology continues to advance, research development in cancer care will improve as well. Artificial intelligence(AI) is man made program meant to replicate human thought process, similar to humans they’re meant to evolve.According to the article, “AI in the Fight Against Cancer and Other Diseases”, “Using AI to unearth the knowledge in scientific journals could help scientific journals could help scientists not only make better, well-informed decisions but also aid in finding better treatment and prevention for cancer”(Dr. Lachmi). 

We as humans don’t have the time to be going through all of our past records, so with the help of AI programs specifically meant to look through last data, it would save doctors and scientists time. Although the extent of our AI capabilities haven’t reached the point of the AI found in movies, we are getting there. According to the article, “10 ways tech is improving cancer research”, 

“Microsoft announced Project Hanover, which aims to use machine learning and natural 

language processing to help doctors sort through the vast amounts of new medical 

research published each year… they can better the most effective and individualized 

treatments for each patient”(Rayome, Alison D)

Once this program comes out and is implemented by many scientists and doctors, cancer research will reach a new milestone. Even though we haven’t reached the peak of AI like in science fiction, we are getting there. 

Next, another impact would be how as technology continues to grow, this will result in the creation of better alternatives and improvements of our current ways to treat cancer. According to the article “Innovative Technologies Changing Cancer Treatment”, “The development of nanomedicine… in which engineered nanoparticles (NPs) with dimensions of less than 100 nm are used to treat disease, primarily cancer”(Collins, Denis M et. Al). 

In other words, it would be like sending an army of tiny soldiers to attack the cancer cells, completely erasing the cancer from the body. With this advancement in technology, it will impact the fight against cancer. This is important because then cancer patients wouldn’t have to worry about risking their lives by going through surgery or treatments involving radiation. Although this method does seem very effective in theory, it’s very difficult to put it into practice. To actually be able to successfully use them, you’d need a vast understanding of markers, microenvironments, and tumor biology. According to the article, “Innovative Technologies Changing Cancer Treatment”, “Prof. Madabhushi’s group has been developing powerful computerized image-based risk assessment tools for the mining of digital pathology”. With pathomics, a field in medical study that’s meant to pull out a large amount of quantitative features from medical images using data-characterisation algorithms, doctors would be able to detect cancerous cells at earlier stages. This would impact the fight against cancer because cancer cells in its early stages are much easier to get rid of, pretty much getting rid of it before it becomes a more serious threat.

Lastly, another impact would be that as technology continues to evolve, our ability to detect and/or prevent different types of cancer will get better. According to the article, “10 ways tech is improving cancer research”, “A NASA machine learning algorithm that identifies similarities between galaxies will now analyze tissue samples for signs of cancer” (Rayome, Alison D). Technology can be used for multiple things, it doesn’t have to be used for only a single task, this NASA machine an example of this. It was originally just meant to be able compare different galaxies in space, but now it’s being implemented in the medical field. According to the article, “The Impact of Future Technology on Cancer Care”, Dr. Sikora believes in the future technology will be much more advanced, to the point where we would be able to detect cancer from home(Dr. Sikora). Sadly, this is in the distant future, we’ve yet to reach those capabilities. Additionally, just being able to detect the cancer cells isn’t actually getting rid of it. However, we have other forms of technology meant to get rid of the cancer cells detected by technology, like the NASA machine. In the future, our technology will eventually meet the expectations of Dr. Sikora, revolutionizing the medical field and the fight against cancer.

From my research, where I interviewed a total of thirty people, I learned how much people know about the medical field and their opinions on in it. For my first question, “How are the notes from past scientists and doctors still viable for research today?”, many answered by saying past research are essentially the foundation of all our modern day research. However many said said they weren’t viable since the technology at the time wasn’t as advanced. My next interview question, “What other modern forms of technology can be used for Cancer research?”, many of the answers taught me new forms of technology that can be used for cancer research, like stem cell research, ultrasonographer, virtual reality programs, etc. From my third question, “What do you know about modern day cures for cancer?”, the answers showed much of society knows anything about modern day cancer treatments. My last question, “How do you think medicine would be today without technology?”, shows just how reliant we’ve become on technology. Majority of people’s answers were negative, many believed that there would more deaths and we would be less advanced. This research provided enlightening different point of views on my research topic.

All in all, as technology continues to develop, it will continue to impact the fight against cancer. Technology will improve cancer research, create better alternatives and/or improve our current methods to treat cancer, and our ability to detect and prevent different cancers will get better.

Work Cited

Charmsaz, Sara, et al. “Innovative Technologies Changing Cancer Treatment.” Innovative Technologies Changing Cancer Treatment, MDPI, 19 June 2018, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6025540/.

Lachmi, Karin. “AI In The Fight Against Cancer And Other Diseases.” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 22 Apr. 2019, www.forbes.com/sites/forbestechcouncil/2019/04/22/ai-in-the-fight-against-cancer-and-other-diseases/.

Rayome, Alison DeNisco. “10 Ways Tech Is Improving Cancer Research.” TechRepublic, www.techrepublic.com/article/10-ways-tech-is-improving-cancer-research/.

Sikora, Karol. “The Impact of Future Technology on Cancer Care.” Clinical Medicine, www.clinmed.rcpjournal.org/content/2/6/560.abstract.