University of Hawaiʻi Cancer Center
AI Precision Health Institute

Reducing the burden of cancer in Hawaiʻi through AI

The AI Precision Health Institute develops and validates AI models for cancer-risk identification, early detection, and novel interventions — focused on the unique ethnic and cultural qualities of Hawaiʻi and the Pacific.

What we do

AI PHI develops and validates AI models for cancer risk, detection, and intervention — with a focus on the unique ethnic and cultural qualities of Hawaiʻi and the Pacific. We support the AI-for-cancer community in the region through pilot project funding, technical resources, and a monthly affinity group bringing together AI researchers and clinicians.

Next Affinity Group meeting

Federated prediction for radiotherapy

Friday, May 1, 2026 · 9:00 AM HST · via Zoom

Yading Yuan

Yading Yuan

A talk on how deep learning can improve radiation-therapy planning efficiency through federated prediction — addressing data scarcity while preserving privacy across institutions.

Register for this Event → All upcoming events →

Register once to attend this and any future AI PHI Affinity Group meeting — Zoom emails you the join link automatically.

Featured Research

Predicting mortality from total-body DXA

Schematic of the Glaser 2022 deep-learning pipeline using longitudinal total-body DXA scans for mortality prediction

Glaser Y, Shepherd J, Leong LT, Wolfgruber T, Lui L, Sadowski P, Cummings SR. Deep learning predicts all-cause mortality from longitudinal total-body DXA imaging. Communications Medicine. 2022;2(1):102.

A deep neural network trained on whole-body DXA scans from 3,000+ older adults in the Health ABC study predicts all-cause mortality more accurately than established clinical risk scores — and surfaces interpretable image regions that drive the prediction.

Read the paper ↗

Co-Directors

John Shepherd

John Shepherd, PhD

Co-Director · Imaging Sciences

Peter Sadowski

Peter Sadowski, PhD

Co-Director · Machine Learning

See full team →
Partners & support

Built with our community

Western Digital

Industry support from Western Digital (data-storage equipment and expertise). Academic collaborations with the University of Hawaiʻi High Performance Computation Center and the UH Data Science Institute. Convening home: the University of Hawaiʻi Cancer Center.

Stay in the loop

New publications, study announcements, and research updates — occasional, no spam.