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Scientists have developed a revolutionary new AI tool which, according to a new study, may become crucial in lung cancer screening and treatment.The study, published in the journal npj Precision Oncology, explored the capabilities of a new device, developed by a team at Northwestern Medicine. The device is called iSeg, which comes from its ability to perform tumor segmentation (online or mapping tumors). The traditional process of tumor segmentation is complex and poses challenges for doctors. It can also take multiple doctors visits, several scans, and a great deal of time. In one study, manual segmentation required 12 scans and took doctors seven hours to complete the manual tumor mapping. Other AI tools have been developed for cancer screenings, however, those tools used static images. iSeg uses 3D imagery for a deeper understanding of the tumor, including how it moves as a patient breathesan important factor in determining treatment plans. iSeg’s clearer mapping also means it exposes areas that doctors may miss while using manual segmentation. In the study, after the AI was trained, iSeg was shown scans it had never seen, and was tasked with outlining tumors. When compared to outlines drawn by physicians, iSeg matched experts’ drawings, but it also flagged additional areas that doctors couldnt see. Interestingly, those areas turned out to be critical, as they are often linked to more serious diagnoses and worse outcomes if overlooked. Were one step closer to cancer treatments that are even more precise than any of us imagined just a decade ago, said Dr. Mohamed Abazeed, senior author of the study, and chair and professor of radiation oncology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. The goal of this technology is to give our doctors better tools, added Abazeed. Other experts say AI technology is important when it comes to lung cancer patients, not only because it can save lives, but also because it may help close care gaps that lead to underdiagnosing for certain groups due to socioeconomic factors. Pulmonologist Stephen Kuperberg, MPH 24, and David Christiani, Elkan Blout Professor of Environmental Genetics at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, explained in a June commentary that cancer screening rates are lower among high-risk patients from Black and Latinx neighborhoods. The underlying reasons for poor uptake within this population are complex, including structural racism and social and cultural factors,” they wrote, urging the “vital need” for more AI tools which can help with “optimal data collection.” Currently, the glaring gap in early detection leads to higher mortality from the disease for those groups. They added, AI technologies will transform reporting, collecting, and processing population data, whether in public datasets and repositories or within institutions, paving the way for discovery and methodology development in lung cancer detection.
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The average rate on a 30-year U.S. mortgage fell for the fifth straight week to its lowest level since early April, an encouraging sign for potential buyers who have wrestled with rising home prices. The long-term rate fell to 6.67% from 6.77% last week, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday. A year ago, the rate averaged 6.95%. Borrowing costs on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages, popular with homeowners refinancing their home loans, fell to 5.80% from 5.89% last week. A year ago, it was 6.25%, Freddie Mac said. High mortgage rates can add hundreds of dollars a month in costs for borrowers and reduce their purchasing power. Thats helped keep the U.S. housing market in a sales slump that dates back to 2022, when mortgage rates began to climb from the rock-bottom lows they reached during the pandemic. Last year, sales of previously occupied U.S. homes sank to their lowest level in nearly 30 years. Theyve remained sluggish so far this year, as many prospective homebuyers have been discouraged by elevated mortgage rates and home prices that have continued to climb, albeit more slowly. High borrowing costs are also putting pressure on the new home market. Last week, the government reported that sales of new U.S. homes fell nearly 14% in May from the previous month. Recent data suggests sales could pick up in the coming months, especially with the recent decline in mortgage rates. A seasonally adjusted index of pending U.S. home sales rose 1.8% in May from the previous month and increased 1.1% from May last year, the National Association of Realtors said last week. Theres usually a month or two lag between a contract signing and when the sale is finalized, which makes pending home sales a bellwether for future completed home sales. Mortgage rates are influenced by several factors, from the Federal Reserves interest rate policy decisions to bond market investors expectations for the economy and inflation. The key barometer is the 10-year Treasury yield, which lenders use as a guide to pricing home loans. The yield was at 4.33% at midday Thursday, down from 4.58% just a few weeks ago. The average rate on a 30-year mortgage has remained relatively close to its high so far this year of just above 7%, set in mid-January. The 30-year rates low point this year was in early April when it briefly dipped to 6.62%. Mortgage rates have now fallen five weeks in a row, reflecting the recent pullback in bond yields. The recent decline in mortgage rates appears to have encouraged some home shoppers. Last week, mortgage applications rose 2.7% from a week earlier, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. Economists generally expect mortgage rates to stay relatively stable in the coming months, with forecasts calling for the average rate on a 30-year mortgage to remain in a range between 6% and 7% this year. Matt Ott, AP business writer
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Good night, Great America? Amusement park operator Six Flags Entertainment Corporation may close its Santa Clara, California-based Great America park after five decades, according to comments made by company leaders at its most recent investor day event, which was held on May 20. The catalyst for the potential closure is that the companys lease is up, and if its not extended, Great America could shut down at the end of its 2027 season. Unless we decide to extend, and exercise one of our options to extend that lease, that parks last year without that extension would be after the [20]27 season, said Brian Witherow, Six Flags CFO, during that meeting. Witherow went on to say that the company has had difficulty contending with rising costs in recent years, particularly labor costs. Some parks “have seen their wage rate go from $10, $11 [per hour], to $17, $18. Thats a lot to absorb, he said. He went on to refer to the Santa Clara park as “low on the ranking of margins.” That said, nothing is definite, and Six Flags tells Fast Company that no final decision has been made about the park’s fate. As previously announced at the time of the sale, the parks land lease will expire in 2028 with a potential five-year renewal option,” a spokesperson for Six Flags’ West region said in a statement. “At this time, we are still in the planning stages and are working with stakeholders and engaging the community. Until we know more, we remain focused on the great season that’s already underway at the park and the events ahead. Reevaluating a sprawling empire of amusements Six Flags recently announced the closure of another parkSix Flags America and Hurricane Harbor, in Bowie, Marylandwhich the company determined was not a strategic fit with the companys long-term growth plan, in the words of CEO Richard Zimmerman. Six Flags, whose merger with Cedar Fair was completed a year ago, operates parks in 18 states (17, following the Maryland-based parks closure), as well as parks in Mexico, and in two Canadian provinces. In all, that includes 56 parks42 amusement or theme parks and 14 water parks. Over the years, it has also closed or sold parks in New Orleans (due to Hurricane Katrina in 2005), Ohio, Washington, and Kentucky, among other locations. Shares of Six Flags Entertainment Corporation (NYSE: FUN) are down more than 32% year to date. Great America first opened in 1976 as a Marriott-branded park, called Marriotts Great America, and if it were to close in 2027, it would be shortly after its 51st year in operation.
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