Health in the "cloud"
Digital healthcare will prolong life, says the head of NostaLab
The development of digital healthcare in the near future will allow not only to treat serious illnesses, but also to predict cancer, heart attacks, as well as grow new organs, overcome many viruses and prolong life, says John Nosta, president of the international research organization NostaLab.
The organization conducts research and analysis in the field of digital healthcare.
Digital healthcare usually means services for remote interaction between a patient and a doctor and a system for using devices for remote monitoring of vital signs. It traditionally includes applications that allow you to remind about taking pills, make an appointment with a doctor, activity trackers – portable devices for measuring pressure, pulse, pedometers. In fact, the term "digital healthcare" describes any, including indirect, forms of patient interaction with the healthcare system in electronic form.
The Open Innovations Forum will be held in Moscow on October 16-18, the main theme of which is "Digital Economy. Challenges of Global transformation". MIA "Russia Today" is the general information partner of the forum. NostaLab participates in this event.
Activity trackers are just the beginning
"When we talk about digital healthcare, many people think that we are talking about activity trackers, step counters. This is extremely generalized and not quite correct. Digital healthcare implies much more and includes many important positive technologies that can really change our lives. Among these technologies are the introduction of big data (a system for collecting and processing a large amount of information – ed.) and analytics, artificial intelligence, the introduction of genomics to understand the source code of our body, as well as a number of complex devices, for example, robotics," Nosta told RIA Novosti.
"Activity trackers really don't reflect the importance of digital healthcare. People using these little trackers don't really need them, as they are already in good shape, go to gyms and are generally athletic. Our task is to help change this option. And we are doing it by creating devices that not only tell us about the steps we have taken, but will also talk about the occurrence of cancer or warn about a possible heart attack. For me, this is the magic of digital healthcare. Digital healthcare will help us to find and treat diseases in the early stages, when it will be most effective," the expert said.
"The potential of such technologies lies not only in their gradual development, but also in opportunities that can change lives in the future.... I think that both patients and healthcare providers will find advantages in technology. Analysis in the field of genomics can provide data on diseases and help to find the necessary therapy, and can also provide information about other potential diseases – Parkinson's or Alzheimer's. Of course, there may not be a quick solution to these potential problems," Nosta said.
The body is like a machine
Nosta believes that from the point of view of public health, the human body is very similar to the structure of the car. "Our cars have a lot of sensors, and if at least one breaks, the indicator on the dashboard will tell us about it, and we will be able to fix it. Our body also has sensors. However, we can predict the breakdown in advance with the help of technology. In the future, we will be able to use computers and technologies to provide such medical services, " he believes.
The expert does not rule out that over time, technology will slow down aging. "I believe that life extension is an extremely important aspect of digital healthcare. It's important to understand that we don't just want to live longer. Extending our years implies the possibility of improving our quality of life with age. I believe that with the help of technology, it will be possible to find diseases at the earliest stages. Some call it "stage zero diseases". For example, cancer has the first, second, third and fourth stages. But what if we had detected cancer at stage zero or discovered the likelihood of a heart attack before it occurred? We can track changes in the main biochemical parameters in the blood, changes in the coronary arteries that could portend a heart attack," he added.
"You can avoid diseases by taking care of yourself. If we could detect and destroy the first cancer cell in you, we would actually take the first step in preventing cancer. Diseases can be prevented by detecting them at an early stage, they can be detected at an early stage with the help of technology," the expert said.
"Another important question is the assessment of what happens to our body as we age. When we are young, we have such interesting cells as stem cells. They allow us to repair our body, this is their job. They can become any necessary cell in the body – bone, muscle, part of the brain, skin, and so on. With age, we lose the number of these stem cells in the body and the possibility of regeneration of our body disappears. I think we'll find a way to repair the organs. Usually we only treat the condition of patients, but we can sometimes perform transplantation or use stem cells. So, we will treat the body like a car: if there is a broken organ, we will replace it or fix it with stem cells," he said.
As for infectious and viral diseases, they will partially disappear in the future, Nosta predicts. "We will be able to understand the genetic code and treat diseases, but not to stop them, but to eradicate them. We will be able to anticipate this in advance. We will also treat some diseases in a way that we don't even know about now," he said.
Although technology will prolong people's lives, it is too early to talk about eternal life, Nosta believes. "Some argue that we will be able to live forever, because we are changing our life to an artificial one. Some people already consist of technological devices, but the vast majority of us are still natural. I believe that it is possible to strive for eternal life," he said.
Risks cannot be avoided
Nosta noted that currently many people are afraid of technological progress: from patients to research doctors. However, the risks associated with digital healthcare are similar to the risks of discovering ways to produce fire, inventing a car and an airplane. "I believe that with innovation there are opportunities and risks. Therefore, we need to pay attention to the advantages of artificial intelligence and big data and accept that risks appear with technology. I consider myself a technological optimist: I believe that there will be problems, but there will also be opportunities, and they will be bigger and more important," he said.
One of the main concerns is the loss of jobs as the importance of technology grows. Nosta is sure that many jobs in the medical field will disappear, but this will have its advantages. "Even today, radiologists are being replaced by computers. Many professions will disappear, but not completely. Some things will be done by computers, which will allow doctors to spend more time with patients," he believes.
The expert noted that it is difficult to predict what the world, people, and healthcare will be like by 2030, because the world is changing too fast. "But I think we're a little bit more than just people. Some of us have pacemakers, some have artificial legs or arms, and some have implants in the brain that allow us to control diseases like Parkinson's. In a sense, we are already post-people or changed people," he said.
Phones and computers, he said, have already become a "technological emotional part" of people. We don't go home if we forgot to take lunch with us to work, but we will come back if we forgot the phone, he pointed out. "It's a part of our body. In the future, the use of technology is increasing. Computers will do more and have more technology. I believe that the future of humanity will be technological. Many are worried about this, believing that our original humanity will disappear," Nosta said.
Nosta noted that Russia has always been a technologically advanced country, it still plays a huge role in science and the introduction of innovative technologies. "There are many different aspects and perspectives in today's world. Russia should understand that we live in interaction. Cooperation will accelerate innovation. If there is someone with a brilliant idea at one end of the world and someone with the right company at the other, then the idea should be implemented," he said.
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