New research centre develops innovative methods for improved healthcare.
CAIMed develops innovative methods for improved, personalised healthcare. Image source: Canva
In its first meeting on 14 March, the Supervisory Board of the Lower Saxony Centre for AI and Causal Methods in Medicine (CAIMed) was constituted. Dr Georg Schütte, Secretary General of the Volkswagen Foundation, and Rüdiger Eichel, Head of the Department of Research, Innovation and Europe at the Ministry of Science and Culture of Lower Saxony, have assumed the chairmanship. The Supervisory Board also includes Prof. Dr Wolfgang Brück, Spokesman of the Executive Board of the University Medical Centre Göttingen, Prof. Dr Volker Epping, President of Leibniz Universität Hannover, Prof. Dr Metin Tolan, President of Georg-August-Universität Göttingen, Prof. Dr Michael P. Manns, President of Hannover Medical School and Prof. Dr Josef Penninger, Scientific Director of the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research.
At the meeting, the newly constituted Supervisory Board appointed the CAIMed Board of Directors, consisting of Prof. Dr Wolfgang Nejdl (Chairman), Prof. Dr Michael Marschollek, Prof. Dr Ramin Yahyapour, Prof. Dr Niels Grabe, Prof. Dr Michael Meyer-Hermann and Dr Johannes Winter (Managing Director).
New perspectives for merging data science and medicine
"CAIMed will lead healthcare, research, teaching and training into a new era by pooling data science expertise in our metropolitan region.
Almost all areas of medicine are affected, from molecular medicine to imaging procedures in radiology and histopathology to the application and development of endoscopic and robot-assisted surgical procedures," says Prof Dr Michael Manns, President of Hannover Medical School.
"The knowledge- and data-based personalisation of therapy is one of the topics of the future in medicine. AI can be used to identify highly complex correlations, patterns and causalities and to combine and analyse large amounts of data in the shortest possible time. With CAIMed, we have founded an innovative research centre that strengthens our expertise by networking methodical AI research, medical informatics and basic medical research. Thanks to the proven expertise of the scientists at our locations in the Hannover-Braunschweig-Göttingen metropolitan region, we will significantly improve healthcare in the future," says Prof. Dr Volker Epping, President of Leibniz University Hannover.
"Personalised infection medicine is becoming increasingly important in the treatment of infectious diseases and is also being further expanded at the HZI. This generates large amounts of data, for whose detailed analysis and decoding of new correlations artificial intelligence is absolutely essential. The participation of three of our scientists in CAIMed opens up completely new opportunities for cooperation with clinicians, data scientists and AI experts in order to advance modern, patient-centred medicine and conduct cutting-edge research," says Prof Josef Penninger, Scientific Director of the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI).
"CAIMed opens up fascinating perspectives for merging data science and medicine. In Göttingen, we will initiate pioneering research projects to tap into the potential of AI for more precise diagnoses and personalised therapeutic approaches," says Prof. Dr Metin Tolan, President of the University of Göttingen
Rüdiger Eichel, Head of the Department of Research, Innovation and Europe at the Ministry of Science and Culture of Lower Saxony, adds: "Artificial intelligence and other digital technologies are key drivers of the shift towards increasingly personalised medicine. CAIMed can contribute to the rapid and low-threshold transfer of findings into patient care through the exemplary combination of life science and data science expertise and a variety of medical use cases relevant to healthcare. This makes CAIMed a role model and beacon for interdisciplinary and translational networking of research made in Lower Saxony."
"If we want to utilise the opportunities offered by artificial intelligence, we need to master the technologies and develop them further. The CAImed network brings together expertise from different locations. Together, we can put Lower Saxony on the map of AI research and attract talent from all over the world," says Dr Georg Schütte, Secretary General of the Volkswagen Foundation.
Prof Dr Michael Marschollek (MHH) adds: "Researching and shaping AI methods and using them responsibly and specifically in medical decision support for patients is something I am very happy to be involved in! CAIMed gives us a unique opportunity to do this."
"In addition to the development of artificial intelligence methods, our focus is on the transfer to clinical application. The aim of our research activities is to use AI to improve decision-making and therapy in the treatment of patients. This will significantly increase the efficiency of our healthcare system in the future," says Prof Dr Wolfgang Brück, Spokesman of the Executive Board of the University Medical Centre Göttingen.
CAIMed develops innovative methods for improved, personalised healthcare and thus contributes to overcoming widespread diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular diseases and infections. The combination of excellent locations in Lower Saxony for methodical AI research, data-intensive medicine, medical informatics and basic medical research will create a unique beacon for research into AI and personalised medicine.
Text: Sophie Boneß, Communications and Project Manager CAIMed