Dr Iyer on AI Documentation and Tumor Boards in Neuroendocrine Tumors

Renuka Iyer, MD, shares 2 practical considerations for bringing artificial intelligence (AI) into neuroendocrine tumor (NET) care: intentional, standardized documentation and continued reliance on multidisciplinary tumor boards. In this interview from the 2026 North American Neuroendocrine Tumor Society (NANETS) Symposium, Iyer, chief medical officer of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN), explains why the words clinicians choose matter more as AI tools take on a larger role in practice, and why human, multidisciplinary discussion remains central to managing this disease.

Iyer begins with ambient scribes, the AI tools that document what clinicians say during a visit. Because these tools capture the spoken word, she stresses that the terminology used needs to be clear. In NETs, there are specific ways the disease needs to be documented so that what the scribe records is accurate. Iyer points to calling a neuroendocrine tumor a tumor rather than a carcinoma, and to providing both the grade and the stage.

She explains that this precision has a direct purpose. If there is a discrepancy in a pathology report, the treating clinician's voice and validation can take precedence and become what drives how AI search features and search tools work. Iyer describes this as intentional documentation, with careful selection of terminology and standardization, and identifies it as the first takeaway.

Her second point is to always be ready to take patients to tumor board. Iyer calls multidisciplinary care irreplaceable. She says that whether or not AI is involved, and wherever NET care takes place, multidisciplinary discussions are key.

She explains why NETs in particular call for that approach. Systemic therapy in a disease such as colon cancer follows more straight-line algorithms, but NETs are a nuanced disease. Iyer notes that progression confined to just 1 site might be treated with a locoregional approach rather than with systemic therapy.

For that reason, Iyer encourages returning to the tumor board every time, even when doing so may seem somewhat redundant. Taken together, she frames intentional, standardized documentation for AI tools and consistent multidisciplinary review at tumor board as the 2 key takeaways for navigating AI in NET care.