UIC Computer Science Associate Professor and Electronic Visualization Laboratory faculty member, G. Elisabeta Marai with collaborators from the University of Texas, University of Iowa, and University of Minnesota has been awarded an NIH R01 from the National Cancer Institute.

“SMART-ACT: Spatial Methodologic Approaches for Risk Assessment and Therapeutic Adaptation in Cancer Treatment” will develop a computational methodology that supports the construction of a validated precision model of patient-specific outcomes for head and neck cancers, based on demographics, toxicity, and complex imaging data. The methodology will be the first in the field to include both complex imaging and non-imaging data, while taking into account large-scale biological and clinical correlates. A web-based environment will further allow practitioners to interactively explore and communicate the model mechanics and outcomes to stakeholders. The approach is innovative through its leverage of big imaging data repositories and through its unique blend of computational modeling principles from bioengineering, statistics, and computer science (medical imaging and visualization).