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2025 Grantee: Bechien Wu, MD, MPH
Southern California Permanente Medical Group
Research Project: Prediction algorithms for early detection of pancreatic cancer in an integrated health system: a clinical pilot program
Award: 2025 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Catalyst Award
Award Period: October 1, 2025 – December 31, 2026
Amount: $262,000
Biographical Highlights
Dr. Bechien Wu, MD, MPH is a practicing gastroenterologist with a sub-specialty in pancreatology. He earned his medical degree from New York University School of Medicine followed by his residency in internal medicine at Yale New Haven Hospital. He then pursued a fellowship in gastroenterology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston. In addition to his MD, he holds a Master of Public Health (MPH) from Harvard University.
Dr. Wu is currently Physician Director for the Division of Clinician Research at Kaiser Permanente Southern California. He leads and participates in large-scale prospective and retrospective observational research, clinical intervention trials, and multi-center collaborative projects. His research focuses on pancreatic disorders, including acute and chronic pancreatitis, risk stratification for malignant progression of pancreatic cysts, and early detection of pancreatic cancer.
Dr. Wu also serves as co-principal investigator for the PanCAN Early Detection Initiative, which is evaluating the relationship between new-onset diabetes and the earlier diagnosis of pancreatic cancer.
Project Overview
Pancreatic cancer is the third leading cause of cancer death in the United States. A major reason for the lethal nature of this disease is the lack of effective early detection strategies, as survival rates drop dramatically with advanced stages. General population screening is inappropriate given the relatively low prevalence of pancreatic cancer. However, an automated early warning system based on signals obtained in the context of routine clinical care may serve to shift diagnosis to an earlier stage thereby having an immediate impact on disease course. Dr. Wu hypothesizes that the widespread adoption of electronic health records and the emergence of artificial intelligence (AI) have created an opportunity to pursue novel approaches to early detection in pancreatic cancer.
In recent years, multiple prediction algorithms using a variety of machine learning methods have been developed for detection of pancreatic cancer in both the general population and specific high-risk sub-groups. These models have mostly been based on looking back at data that has already been collected and identifying clues in the patients’ past medical records that may signify a later diagnosis of pancreatic cancer. A key step to advancing the promise of AI for early detection is early-stage real-time clinical evaluation. Investigators at Kaiser Permanente Southern California (KPSC) have recently completed a pilot study (NCT04883450) in which model performance was validated by identifying people whose medical records suggest they’re at risk for pancreatic cancer and tracking them over time.
For the 2025 PanCAN Catalyst Award, Dr. Wu will further assess in a real-world setting the feasibility, safety and human factors needed for widespread clinical adoption of the prediction model. In the context of standard routine clinical care, eligible KPSC patients will be identified electronically using the established electronic prediction algorithms. The primary care physicians will be notified, and eligible patients will be offered the opportunity to participate in Dr. Wu’s clinical program. Willing participants will receive subsequent CT scans as part of their clinical care, and observed outcomes of pancreatic cancer incidence will be analyzed. Using this approach, the proposed initiative will evaluate real-world implementation of electronic prediction algorithms for early detection of pancreatic cancer to improve patient outcomes.
