On the practice of classification learning for clinical diagnosis and therapy advice in oncology

Abstract: Artificial intelligence and medicine have a longstanding and proficuous relationship. In the present work we develop a brief assessment of this relationship with specific focus on machine learning, in which we highlight some critical points which may hinder the use of machine learning techniques for clinical diagnosis and therapy advice in practice. We then suggest a conceptual framework to build successful systems to aid clinical diagnosis and therapy advice, grounded on a novel concept we have coined drifting domains. We focus on oncology to build our arguments, as this area of medicine furnishes strong evidence for the critical points we take into account here.