The evidence challenge facing large language models in medicine

The growing use of large language models (LLMs) in medicine presents challenges for traditional approaches to evidence generation and evaluation. Rapid model development and variation in the design and reporting of prospective clinical studies may pose important challenges for timely, meaningful evaluation. This News & Views article explores these challenges and considers emerging strategies for evaluating the efficacy and safety of clinical LLMs.

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Publication Details

Journal
npj Digital Medicine
Published
2026-09-17
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41746-026-03262-5
Primary Topic
Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare and Education
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00
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article

The evidence challenge facing large language models in medicine

Dylan Powell, Nigam H. Shah, Arjun Mahajan
npj Digital Medicine
Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare and Education
article

The evidence challenge facing large language models in medicine

Dylan Powell, Nigam H. Shah, Arjun Mahajan
article en

Abstract

The growing use of large language models (LLMs) in medicine presents challenges for traditional approaches to evidence generation and evaluation. Rapid model development and variation in the design and reporting of prospective clinical studies may pose important challenges for timely, meaningful evaluation. This News & Views article explores these challenges and considers emerging strategies for evaluating the efficacy and safety of clinical LLMs.

npj Digital Medicine
University of Stirling (GB), Harvard University (US), Stanford University (US)
Quality Education
Openalex Percentile: Top 15%
Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare and Education
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