We welcome Maia Campanale to the TARGET project team! Maia is a biomedical engineer of the Neurovascular Research Group (NEUVAS) at the Hospital Del Mar Research Institute Barcelona (IMIM). As she begins her new journey with us, Maia will introduce herself, share insights about her role and experiences, and her new adventure within the TARGET project. Enjoy the reading!

Biomedical engineering and AI: the beginning of my Journey

The passion for challenges has shaped my journey. Since I can remember, I’ve always tried to understand how things work and I would describe myself as a creative person. This led me to pursue an engineering degree, where, to my surprise, I discovered an interest in programming.

Fortunately, my academic path coincided with the introduction of artificial intelligence as topic of study in industrial engineering faculties. Throughout my studies, I not only studied traditional medical technologies but also explored emerging technologies, particularly machine learning and deep learning. I am fascinated by how algorithms can support healthcare personnel in disease prediction and treatment decisions, thereby benefiting patients and the healthcare system.

Afterwards, I chose to expand my studies beyond the realm of biomedical engineering to get a broader view of the industrial sector. During my Master's degree, I collaborated with the Control, Data, and Artificial Intelligence research department at Universidad Politécnica de Catalunya, as well as one of Barcelona's leading hospitals. Here, I got to learn how to apply deep learning to analyze hematological images, specializing in convolutional neural networks (CNNs). This experience enriched me both personally and professionally, leading to the development of my Master’s thesis and my introduction to the world of scientific publications.

I just got involved in the TARGET project with the Neurovascular Research Group (NEUVAS) at the Hospital Del Mar Research Institute Barcelona (IMIM). The TARGET project aims to revolutionize the management of atrial fibrillation and prevent related strokes by developing a new artificial intelligence model based on virtual twins.

Digital twins are transforming approaches across various sectors and some of the most advanced and potentially revolutionary projects with digital twins, which represent a significant step forward in improving people's lives worldwide, originate from the healthcare sector.

Being at the very beginning of my career, I feel both excited to participate in such a project and honoured to collaborate with and learn from experts.

My favourite virtues in people are humility and passion. I admire those who strive to achieve their goals with dedication and enthusiasm.

Looking ahead, I believe that technology will play an increasingly central role in healthcare. Patients will have the capability for continuous remote monitoring, and both diagnostic and therapeutic techniques, along with drug discovery, will become more sophisticated and guided by artificial intelligence.