Evangeli Bista Joins the PATH Expert Group as an Independent Expert: Bringing the Patient Perspective into the New Era of AI in Cancer Care

A new contribution to the European dialogue on safe, responsible and human-centred Artificial Intelligence in healthcare

Evangeli Bista, Co-founder and Head of Operations and Development of Kapa3 – Cancer Guidance Centre, has been invited to join the Expert Group of the European research and innovation project PATH – Patient AI Treatment Hub as an independent expert.

Her participation is undertaken in a personal and independent capacity, with her professional affiliation to Kapa3 – Cancer Guidance Centre, creating an opportunity to bring into the European dialogue experience gained through direct engagement with people affected by cancer, survivors, caregivers and healthcare professionals. The PATH Terms explicitly define Expert Group members as acting independently rather than as partners, employees, agents or subcontractors of the Consortium.

What is PATH – Patient AI Treatment Hub?

PATH – Patient AI Treatment Hub is a European research and innovation project focused on supporting the safe and effective integration of Artificial Intelligence into cancer care through the development of a secure, interoperable and privacy-preserving digital platform.

The project aims to explore how Artificial Intelligence tools can be safely integrated into cancer-care pathways, supporting healthcare professionals and contributing to more personalised approaches while safeguarding privacy and health data.

At the heart of this effort lies a critical question:

How can technological innovation create meaningful value for patients while preserving trust, human oversight, safety and equity?

Participation in the PATH Expert Group

As a member of the PATH Expert Group, Evangeli Bista will contribute independent expertise, opinions, input, comments and feedback in relation to selected project use cases and activities.

The experience developed through Kapa3’s work can contribute to discussions around issues such as:

  • patient-centred cancer care,
  • patient navigation across health and social-care systems,
  • equitable access to information and services,
  • health and digital literacy,
  • health and social rights,
  • responsible use and protection of health data,
  • transparency and human oversight in Artificial Intelligence systems,
  • meaningful involvement of patients and civil society in technology design,
  • and translating technological innovation into real value for people.

Why the Patient Voice Must Be Part of Innovation

Artificial Intelligence is creating new possibilities for healthcare and cancer care. At the same time, its growing use raises important questions concerning trust, transparency, safety, equitable access and human oversight.

For Kapa3, the development of a digital solution cannot begin solely with the question of what is technologically possible.

It must also ask:

What does the patient actually need?

Can people understand the information they receive?

Do they know where that information comes from?

Can they trust the system?

Is it clear when Artificial Intelligence is being used and when human professional judgement is required?

Could digital inequalities lead to new inequalities in healthcare?

And ultimately, does innovation genuinely improve the experience and pathway of a person facing cancer?

These are questions that we believe should remain at the centre of the European discussion on Artificial Intelligence in healthcare.

Kapa3’s experience in digital health

Evangeli Bista’s participation in the PATH Expert Group comes at a time when Kapa3 is systematically expanding its work in digital health, patient navigation and the responsible use of emerging technologies to support people affected by cancer.

This broader work also includes MYRTO – Digital Navigator for Health and Social Rights, an independent Kapa3 initiative developed to help transform complex and often fragmented information on rights, benefits and administrative procedures into more accessible, structured and evidence-based guidance for patients and caregivers.

MYRTO is not part of PATH, and the two initiatives are independent from one another.

However, the experience of developing patient-facing digital services has reinforced several principles that Kapa3 considers essential:

reliable information, transparent sources, understandable communication, data protection, human oversight and a clear pathway to professional support when technology alone is not enough.

This distinction is also important from an intellectual-property perspective, since the PATH Terms preserve intellectual property that exists independently of the Expert’s Services and is not incorporated into PATH Contributions.

From information to trust

Digital transformation in healthcare is not simply about more data, more algorithms or more applications.

It is about creating greater understanding, better access and stronger trust.

For a person facing cancer, information has value when it can be translated into a meaningful next step.

Technology has value when it reduces — rather than increases — complexity.

And Artificial Intelligence has value when it strengthens, rather than replaces, human care, professional judgement and the patient’s ability to participate meaningfully in decisions affecting their life and health.

A new opportunity to contribute to the European dialogue

For Kapa3, the invitation to Evangeli Bista to participate as an independent expert in the PATH Expert Group represents an important opportunity to bring into the European dialogue experience, needs and concerns emerging from the real-world context of cancer care and patient support.

The objective remains clear:

Artificial Intelligence in healthcare should advance with safety, transparency, responsibility, equitable access and meaningful involvement of the people it is designed to serve.

Because innovation creates real value when it is designed with people and for people.


PATH – Patient AI Treatment Hub | At a glance

Field: Artificial Intelligence and data in cancer care
Project: PATH – Patient AI Treatment Hub
Focus: Safe and effective integration of AI into cancer care through secure, interoperable and privacy-preserving approaches.
Expert Group: Independent external experts providing expertise, opinions, input, comments and feedback to the Project.
Independent Expert: Evangeli Bista
Professional role: Co-founder & Head of Operations and Development
Affiliation: Kapa3 – Cancer Guidance Centre

 

Language in cancer care: why words are never neutral

Language used in cancer care is never neutral. The words chosen to describe a diagnosis can significantly shape how a person experiences illness, especially during a highly vulnerable period of life. Depending on how they are used, words may either reinforce fear and stigma or support dignity, psychological safety, and empowerment.

This perspective is highlighted in a recent interview with Evangeli Bista, co-founder of the Cancer Guidance Center (Kapa3), published on iatronet.gr, where she discusses the findings of a study exploring how patients themselves perceive the language used around cancer.

The study, conducted by Kapa3, examined how people living with cancer experience terms such as “cancer patient,” “oncology patient,” or simply “patient,” and how these labels influence their emotional response and sense of identity.

Findings suggest that many patients feel that labels directly linking them to their disease can increase emotional burden and reinforce the idea that cancer defines their entire identity. In contrast, more neutral or person-first expressions (“person with cancer”) appear to offer greater psychological comfort, allowing individuals to maintain a sense of self beyond the diagnosis.

The qualitative analysis also highlights the crucial role of healthcare professionals. Clear, honest, and compassionate communication—without exaggeration or dramatic framing—is consistently described by patients as a key element of trust and emotional support. Communication, in this sense, is not simply a soft skill but an essential part of clinical care.

The study further reinforces the importance of a person-first approach, where the individual comes before the illness. At the same time, participants expressed resistance both to stigma and to excessive heroisation, calling instead for balanced, respectful, and realistic communication.

Ultimately, language in oncology is not just descriptive—it actively shapes the patient experience and becomes part of the care process itself.

Read the full interview with Evangeli Bista on iatronet.gr:
https://www.iatronet.gr/article/139695/karkinopathhs-ogkologikos-asthenhs-h-apla-asthenhs-o-antiktypos-ton-lexeon-ston-karkino

Read the related scientific publication by the Cancer Guidance Center (Kapa3):
https://www.kapa3.gr/nea-epistimoniki-dimosieysi-gia-to-kapa3/

Text/Adaptation: Ifiyenia Anastasiou for Kapa3