Central Florida woman credits artificial intelligence at Orlando Health with saving her life

A Central Florida woman credits artificial intelligence with saving her life. The tech at Orlando Health detected an unusual mass in her lung.

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“I went in for a follow up with my cardiologist for the scans I had on my heart,” Joyce Morris said. “He said there were nodules on the bottom of my right lung. It snowballed from there, it was so fast.”

A stage one lung cancer diagnosis is not what she expected following a cardiologist appointment back in April.

“I stayed in denial and did a lot of praying,” Morris said.

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A quick catch from the artificial intelligence software that reads CT scans at the hospital caught it early.

“I think if it weren’t for the software catching it, it would’ve never been caught,” Dr. Ali Jiwani, an Interventional Pulmonologist at Orlando Health, said.

From there, Morris underwent a bronchoscopy to confirm the cancer. Then, surgery with the help of robots, to remove it.

“We do small incisions between the ribs, instead of opening the chest,” Dr. Luis Herrera, a Thoracic Surgeon at Orlando ealth said. “We do it with a video camera. Also, robotic technology to do more precise surgery and remove the tumor completely.”

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Morris was cancer free within weeks.

Doctors at Orlando Health said the software’s early intervention increased her chances of survival by 95%.

“So now, this lady will lead a perfectly normal rest of her life,” Dr. Jiwani said. “With the exact same life expectancy if she didn’t have lung cancer. Which is amazing.”

Morris said she will never take another breath for granted.

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“I had to blow up a beach ball, with no problem,” Morris said. “I actually beat the girl next to me. And she’s a teenager.”

Doctors recommend eligible patients to undergo yearly lung cancer screenings.

Click here to read the criteria.

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