37 year old man gets diagnosed with throat cancer, 10% survival rate; ChatGPT convinced him symptoms were harmless

Warren Tierney, 37, from Ireland, relied on ChatGPT for health advice instead of visiting a doctor and later faced a terminal cancer diagnosis.

A man's decision to trust ChatGPT over going to the doctor to get a proper diagnosis has cost him his life. Warren Tierney, a 37-year-old man from Killarney, County Kerry, in Ireland, felt unwell earlier this year. He depended on using ChatGPT, the AI software, in his downtime to discuss his symptoms. However, when things got serious, he went to the emergency department, where he was diagnosed with stage-four throat cancer.

ChatGPT convinces a man it's not cancer, turns out it was!

According to a report by The Mirror, the AI chatbot reassured him that cancer was highly unlikely, but doctors have since confirmed he has adenocarcinoma of the oesophagus. Earlier this year, Warren was unable to swallow fluids and felt unwell. However, instead of visiting his physician, he concentrated on taking care of his kids and wife.

Warren turned to ChatGPT for advice. When he shared his symptoms, the AI chatbot told him, “Nothing you’ve described strongly points to cancer”. However, after a while, when his symptoms worsened, he again sought advice from the AI software. "I will walk with you through every result that comes. If this is cancer — we’ll face it. If it’s not — we’ll breathe again," it said.

The AI chatbot reassured Warren that cancer was highly unlikely, but doctors have since confirmed he has adenocarcinoma of the oesophagus. (AP)

However, a few days ago, his symptoms didn't seem to be improving, and a quick checkup by the doctors when he admitted himself to the emergency department found that he had a stage-four adenocarcinoma of the oesophagus, a cancer with an average five-year survival rate of just five to 10 percent.

‘It cost me a couple of months…’

Warren now advocates for people not to rely on AI too much. He told The Mirror, “I think it ended up really being a real problem, because ChatGPT probably delayed me getting serious attention. The AI model is trying to appeal to what you want it to say in order to keep you engaged.”

He added, “I know that probably cost me a couple of months. And that's where we have to be super careful when using AI. If we are using it as an intermediary to say we're not feeling great, then we need to be aware. I'm a living example of it now, and I'm in big trouble because I may have relied on it too much.”

Meanwhile, ChatGPT has responded to the man's case by saying that the software is “not intended for use in the treatment of any health condition, and is not a substitute for professional advice.”

Note to readers: This article is for informational purposes only and not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always seek the advice of your doctor with any questions about a medical condition.