Commentary|Podcasts|March 4, 2026
Precision Hope: The New Frontier of AI-Driven Oncology
Fact checked by: Paige Britt
AI transforms oncology, easing burnout and paperwork, sharpening screening, and helping community clinics handle the coming patient surge.
In this episode of Treating Together, host Pallav Mehta, MD, medical oncologist at MD Anderson Cancer Center at Cooper, assistant professor of medicine at Cooper Medical School, and medical director of Reimagine Care, is joined by
In this episode of Treating Together, host Pallav Mehta, MD, medical oncologist at MD Anderson Cancer Center at Cooper, assistant professor of medicine at Cooper Medical School, and medical director of Reimagine Care, is joined by Doug Flora, MD, executive medical director of Oncology Services at St. Elizabeth Cancer Center and author of Rebooting Cancer Care, discuss the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in oncology, and what the future holds for community oncologists.
The "Why": Addressing the Oncology Crisis
- The Math Problem: By 2030, the number of cancer patients is expected to double, while the U.S. faces a projected shortage of 14,000 oncologists and 1 million nurses.
- Information Overload: With 144,000 new oncology articles indexed on PubMed last year alone, human clinicians can no longer maintain total competency without digital assistance.
- Burnout: Oncology has shifted from the 28th to the 2nd most burned-out specialty in a decade, largely due to the "transactional" nature of modern EMR-heavy practice.
