Introduction: A physician who sees data as a patient ally
In Calgary, Alberta, Dr. Omar Khan is turning data into a core component of cancer care. A medical oncologist who treats breast cancer and sarcoma at the Arthur J.E. Child Comprehensive Cancer Centre, Khan has long believed that artificial intelligence and advanced analytics will transform how clinicians diagnose, treat, and monitor cancer. His journey—from a fellowship that nudged him toward technology to becoming a site medical informatics lead for Connect Care—exemplifies how data-driven medicine is becoming a practical and patient-centered reality in Alberta.
Data as a living laboratory
Khan’s work spans multiple projects designed to capture real-world patient experiences and outcomes. He leads initiatives such as PROgress Tracker, a Breast Cancer Canada project collecting patient-reported outcomes across the country, and a metastatic breast cancer database in Alberta. These efforts allow clinicians to see how patients feel, function, and respond to treatments beyond traditional clinical metrics.
As the provincial tumour team lead for sarcoma and a member of the Integrated Sarcoma Research Program (iSARP) at the University of Calgary, Khan is at the intersection of patient care and research. With the new Acute Assessment Unit (AAU) at Arthur Child—an Alberta-first dedicated to rapid outpatient assessment of cancer patients with acute symptoms—Khan has a unique dataset at his fingertips. The AAU, opened in February 2025, has already connected with hundreds of patients, helping to reduce unnecessary emergency visits while accelerating access to care.
“The AAU is a living data lab,” Khan explains. “By tracking why patients come to the unit, what tests they need, what treatments they receive, and how long visits last, we can build models that reveal opportunities to prevent complications and improve care pathways.” This approach reflects a broader goal: to use data to reduce suffering and streamline the patient journey across Alberta’s cancer system.
From patient stories to predictive models
Beyond patient-reported data, Khan is pioneering the use of neural networks to interpret imaging biomarkers from CT scans. Over the past five years, his team has compiled one of the largest lung cancer imaging datasets in Alberta, analyzing more than 5,000 variables related to tumor characteristics and patient physiology. These neural networks can identify relationships in non-linear data that may elude traditional analysis, potentially revealing predictors of survival and responses to therapy that aren’t immediately evident in standard radiology reports.
The goal is not to replace clinicians but to empower them with deeper, data-backed insights. By forecasting disease trajectories—such as how a tumor might progress or how a patient’s body composition affects response to treatment—physicians can tailor plans to the individual, balancing efficacy with quality of life.
Ethics, safety, and the pace of innovation
Khan is acutely aware that health data is a sacred trust. Developing AI models that are both accurate and protective of patient confidentiality is a lengthy but essential process. “There are many steps to ensure we implement these tools safely,” he notes. “We’re not rushing to apply them in the clinic today, but I expect to see meaningful use in the next five to ten years.”
Alberta’s health system provides a rigorous testing ground, with Connect Care offering a province-wide electronic medical record system that enables secure, integrated data sharing. In Khan’s view, this infrastructure is the backbone for responsible AI adoption—where insights come from comprehensive, high-quality data and are translated into improved patient outcomes without compromising privacy.
Looking ahead: A transformative era for cancer care in Alberta
Dr. Omar Khan’s work within the Alberta Cancer Foundation ecosystem reflects a broader shift in oncology: data-informed care that respects patient voices, leverages cutting-edge analytics, and scales successful pilots into system-wide improvements. Projects like the AAU and PROgress Tracker, combined with AI-driven imaging analysis, position Alberta as a leader in using data to inform everyday clinical decisions and long-term research initiatives.
“If we can track trends in why patients need the AAU and the treatments they’re on, we can help individual oncologists take preventative actions to reduce symptoms,” Khan says. “That’s how data can change not just outcomes, but the experience of care across the whole cancer system.”
