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Retrieval Augmented Generation-Enabled Large Language Model for Risk Stratification of Cutaneous Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Jairath NK, Pahalyants V, Cheraghlou S, Maas D, Lee N, Criscito MC, Stevenson ML, Mehta A et al.

JAMA dermatology, 2025

Abstract

IMPORTANCE: There exists substantial heterogeneity in outcomes within T stages for patients with cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC).

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether a customized generative pretrained transformer model, trained on a comprehensive dataset with more than 1 trillion parameters and equipped with relevant focused context and retrieval augmented generation (RAG), could excel in aggregating and interpreting vast quantities of data to develop a novel class-based risk stratification system that outperforms the current standards.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: To build the RAG knowledge base, a systematic review of the literature was conducted that addressed risk factors for poor outcomes in cSCC. Using the RAG-enabled generative pretrained transformer (GPT) model, we developed a novel class-based risk stratification system that assigned point values for risk factors, culminating in a GPT-based prognostication system called the artificial intelligence-derived risk score (AIRIS). The system's performance was validated on a combined prospective and retrospective cohort of 2379 primary cSCC tumors (1996-2023) with at least 36 months of follow-up, against Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) and American Joint Committee on Cancer Staging Manual, eighth edition (AJCC8) systems in stratifying risk for locoregional recurrence (LR), nodal metastasis (NM), distant metastasis (DM), and disease-specific death (DSD).

MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: Performance metrics…

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