Assessing Algorithmic Fairness With a Multimodal Artificial Intelligence Model in Men of African and Non-African Origin on NRG Oncology Prostate Cancer Phase III Trials.

PURPOSE

Artificial intelligence (AI) tools could improve clinical decision making or exacerbate inequities because of bias. African American (AA) men reportedly have a worse prognosis for prostate cancer (PCa) and are underrepresented in the development genomic biomarkers. We assess the generalizability of tools developed using a multimodal AI (MMAI) deep learning system using digital histopathology and clinical data from NRG/Radiation Therapy Oncology Group PCa trials across racial subgroups.

METHODS

In total, 5,708 patients from five randomized phase III trials were included. Two MMAI algorithms were evaluated: (1) the distant metastasis (DM) MMAI model optimized to predict risk of DM, and (2) the PCa-specific mortality (PCSM) MMAI model optimized to focus on prediction death in the presence of DM (DDM). The prognostic performance of the MMAI algorithms was evaluated in AA and non-AA subgroups using time to DM (primary end point) and time to DDM (secondary end point). Exploratory end points included time to biochemical failure and overall survival with Fine-Gray or Cox proportional hazards models. Cumulative incidence estimates were computed for time-to-event end points and compared using Gray's test.

RESULTS

There were 948 (16.6%) AA patients, 4,731 non-AA patients (82.9%), and 29 (0.5%) patients with unknown or missing race status. The DM-MMAI algorithm showed a strong prognostic signal for DM in the AA (subdistribution hazard ratio [sHR], 1.2 [95% CI, 1.0 to 1.3]; = .007) and non-AA subgroups (sHR, 1.4 [95% CI, 1.3 to 1.5]; < .001). Similarly, the PCSM-MMAI score showed a strong prognostic signal for DDM in both AA (sHR, 1.3 [95% CI, 1.1 to 1.5]; = .001) and non-AA subgroups (sHR, 1.5 [95% CI, 1.4 to 1.6]; < .001), with similar distributions of risk.

CONCLUSION

Using cooperative group data sets with a racially diverse population, the MMAI algorithm performed well across racial subgroups without evidence of algorithmic bias.