Abstract: A method for predicting whether an early stage (IA, IB) non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patient is at a high risk of recurrence of the cancer following surgery involves subjecting a blood-based sample from the patient (obtained prior to, at, or after the surgery) to mass spectrometry and classification with a computer implementing a classifier. If the patients blood sample is classified as “high risk”, highest risk“or the equivalent, the patient can be guided to more aggressive treatment post-surgery. The classifier, or combination of classifiers, can be arranged in a hierarchical manner to make intermediate classifications, such as intermediate/high or intermediate/low, as well as low risk” or “lowest risk” classifications. Such additional classifications may guide clinical decisions as well.

Abstract: Shapley values (SVs) have become an important tool to further the goal of explainability of machine learning (ML) models. However, the computational load of exact SV calculations increases exponentially with the number of attributes. Hence, the calculation of SVs for models incorporating large numbers of interpretable attributes is problematic. Molecular diagnostic tests typically seek to leverage information from hundreds or thousands of attributes, often using training sets with fewer instances. Methods are described for evaluate SVs using Monte Carlo sampling or exact calculation in polynomial time (i.e., reasonably quickly and efficiently) using the architecture of a ML model designed for robust molecular test generation, and without requiring classifier retraining.