AI can detect early stage Breast Cancer in Women: Study

A latest study by researchers in Germany has shown that Artificial Intelligence (AI) can be a valuable tool in early detection of breast cancer. The emerging technology has potential to improve breast cancer detection rate by 17% in near future, as per researchers.

According to recent statistics, over 2.29 Million women worldwide, were diagnosed with breast cancer just in 2022 and it remains the number one cancer found in women across the globe. Experts say that early detection of undeveloped breast cancer can save thousands of women from the disease using AI technology.

According to a report in The Indian Express, researchers from University of Lubeck, Germany are now banking upon AI for early detection as compared to traditional screenings that usually involve radiologists reviewing images and then concluding results, which can be a time consuming procedure, prone to errors.

Now with AI, radiologists can identify suspicious cases and reduce instances of missed detections to a staggering 17%, as per a study carried out by researchers from the University of Lubeck, Germany. As per the report in The Indian express, the study was carried out on 119 radiologists who screened 4,60,000 women with two options of either going with traditional methodology or choosing AI. The participants were between the ages of 50 and 69 and they participated in mammography screenings between the years 2021 to 2023.

Based on the study, AI-backed radiologists obtained a cancer detection rate of 6.7 per 1,000 screenings, which is a 17.6 per cent improvement against traditional readings. For biopsies ordered, as many as 65 per cent of AI-assisted readings confirmed cancer against 59 per cent without AI. The study also revealed that AI reduced workloads by enabling 43 per cent faster reading times without compromising on accuracy.

The study also revealed that AI reduced workloads by enabling 43 per cent faster reading times without compromising on any accuracy. Virtually, AI has increased the success rate by identifying the actual cancer cases among the women who received recalled mammograms. The study also shows how AI is designed to assist and not replace radiologists and can help with the early detection of cancer.