The National Center for Neurology and Psychiatry in Japan has collaborated with NTT Corporation to develop a bio-digital twin technology in the brain to detect and prevent mental illness.
WHAT MATTERS
A digital twin processing platform, expected to be built next year, will collect various data types from medical studies provided by NCNP. The NCNP is currently building a library of data on diseases of the mental and nervous systems, including PET and biospecimens useful for analyzing cranial nerve diseases.
The digital library will later be used to create detailed maps and biological models, powered by NTT’s AI and ML processing technology.
WHY IT MATTERS
Currently approx five million people in Japan they are known to be treated for mental and behavioral disorders. This number, which includes undiagnosed cases, is seen to be on an upward trend trajectory. A previous government study in Japan, for example, it is estimated that by 2025, approximately 6.75 million people over the age of 65 in the country will have dementia.
Despite this, Japan remains ill-equipped to tackle this growing crisis, as NTT says it lacks systematic treatment methods and comprehensive testing. The NCNP is now trying to fill these gaps through the use of digital twin technology.
With a digital twin, patients can eliminate the physical and mental burden of invasive and complex tests and their costs.
The technology is also expected to enable risk prediction and early detection and prevention of diseases. NTT and NCNP plan to collaborate with pharmaceutical regulators in the development of new therapeutic drugs. They aim to create a practical system for the early detection and prevention of diseases, which includes the ability to predict an individual’s risk of serious side effects from taking medications.
THE BIG TREND
NTT first proposed the digital twin project to the NCNP in 2020. The technology aimed to map a person’s brain, body and psychology to understand their current state of physical and mental wellbeing.
NTT also at the end of last year affiliated with Harvard’s John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences to advance cardiac care through cardiovascular bio-digital twins.
Most industry experts and futurists anticipate the future widespread adoption of digital twins in healthcare ‘within the next six years’, arA recent study by TATA Consultancy Service has shown.
Elsewhere in Asia Pacific, Singapore is also using digital twin technology in healthcare. In addition to predicting and monitoring disease outbreaks, the technology is now being tested SingHealth for healthcare facility resource optimization and planning.