An app using artificial intelligence (AI) could be “revolutionary” for patients with chronic lung diseases such as cystic fibrosis, with the technology allowing patients to know up to 10 days in advance when they will become ill. Predictable.
Breathe RM is expected to enable remote monitoring of cystic fibrosis (CF) patients, eliminating the need for regular health checks in the clinic.
The technology can also predict when a patient is likely to develop a serious infection (called an exacerbation) that can lead to weeks of hospitalization.
The treatment is being trialled at the Royal Papworth Hospital with support from medical research charity LifeArc and the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NIHR).
About 50 patients are participating in the year-long project, known as ACE-CF, and researchers hope to recruit 400.
Breathe RM is designed like a “to-do list” that collects data that users should enter every day.
Monitoring vitals at home eliminates the need for patients to return to the clinic for tests every six to eight weeks. Appointments last several hours and some patients are isolated because they have antibiotic-resistant infections in their lungs.
Lung function is measured with a hand-held device called a spirometer, and blood oxygen is measured with a peg oximeter attached to the tip of the patient’s finger.
Both devices connect to the app using Bluetooth, and data is entered automatically.
The technology also collects data from personal smartwatches, allowing patients to self-report how often they cough and how well they feel.
Andres Froth, Professor of Respiratory Biology at the University of Cambridge and Director of Research at the Cambridge Center for Lung Infections at Royal Papworth Hospital, created the AI algorithm used in the app.
Examine the nuances of the data to alert patients when to open their airway or call their doctor to avoid deterioration.
Professor Froth, who is also a practicing CF doctor, told the PA news agency:
“It’s a traffic light system, and really this whole philosophy is aimed at empowering people with CF to take control of their own health.
“So for testing purposes, we are asking people to focus on the algorithm.
“Green – Keep doing what you’re doing. Amber – Do more of what you know you should be doing, like increasing airway management and increasing medication compliance.
“And it’s red. Call your CF team, because red means you’re likely to get sick in the future.”
ACE-CF also involves Magic Bullet, a company set up by the husband-and-wife team of project manager Kirsty Hill, 47, and Microsoft employee David Hill, 54.
They began searching for solutions for CF patients after their son George Hill, 19, was diagnosed as an infant.
Mrs Hill said the couple’s “initial concept” was a “de facto nugger”. Furthermore, she added: “Honestly, what we wanted at the time was something that would help our son help himself and take away the nagging side of being a parent.
“Relationships can become very strained if you’re always just asking someone to do something for you.”
Mrs Hill told PA that Professor Froth had “always focused on pioneering real change in this field”.
She added: “If that exacerbation prediction is valid in a trial, that would be a revolutionary feature that we can offer to people through the app.”
“What I find from talking to people with CF, and from talking to others, is that they always want people to think about having CF as little as possible.”
According to the Cystic Fibrosis Trust, around 10,800 people in the UK suffer from the condition.
Mrs Hill described George as a “tenacious” man who had a passion for rollercoasters and was currently training to become an engineer at Thorpe Park.
Inspired by his brother’s illness, her other son Sam, 21, is researching medical genetics and wants to make an impact on genetic diseases.
Stephen Tate, Senior Business Manager at LifeArc, said:
“Normally they can kind of tell, ‘I have a cold, it’s going to get worse.’ But this helps them quantify it and essentially gives the doctor a leg up on the game.” It should be helpful.”
It is hoped that the same technology in Breathe RM could also be used to help patients with bronchiectasis, another chronic lung disease in which the airways in the lungs widen.
Another study, called Bronch-Ex, has received funding from LifeArc as part of a wider £100m investment in the treatment of chronic respiratory infections.
Tait added: “You never hear about bronchiectasis, it’s kind of a silent disease. I think there are over 200,000 people in the UK and growing.
“It’s often misdiagnosed. It’s misdiagnosed as COPD in older people and asthma in younger people.”