What Experts are Saying About the Use of AI in Breast Screening

The World Health Organization (WHO) highlights the global burden of breast cancer, the most commonly diagnosed cancer, accounting for 1 in 8 cancer diagnoses worldwide. In 2020, there were approximately 2.3 million new cases of breast cancer globally and about 685,000 deaths. The WHO predicts the breast cancer burden will increase to more than 3 million new cases per year by 2040.

How do we address the burden of breast cancer? What tools and technology are available to support breast screening and early diagnosis? The use of artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly becoming the norm in breast cancer screening. This week’s Domain Knowledge explores what the experts are saying about the use of AI in breast imaging.

Society of Breast Imaging (SBI) President John Lewin, MD, outlines trends in breast screening. In the video, he discusses his thoughts on the growing use of AI in the coming years, especially for first pass views to flag exams that radiologists need to spend more time on.

Stamatia Destounis, MD, FACR, a radiologist and managing partner at Elizabeth Wende Breast Care in Rochester, New York, chair of the American College of Radiology (ACR) Breast Commission, and member of the Public Information Advisors Committee for Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) and Society of Breast Imaging (SBI) Communication Committee addresses the rapid adoption of 3D mammography and use of AI to address dense breasts. In the video she explains how artificial intelligence (AI) will play a growing role as a second set of eyes to detect cancers or other anomalies in imaging studies. 

October is breast cancer awareness month, but breast health and early breast cancer detection should always be a priority. Previously we sat down with Dr. Amy Patel, Medical Director of the Breast Care Center at Liberty Hospital, a true champion and advocate for women’s health. In our 4-part series with Dr. Patel we discuss everything from access to care, reaching underserved communities and confusing screening recommendations. During our final interview in the series, we asked Dr. Patel about the use of AI in breast screening. She shared that it’s her hope artificial intelligence becomes the mainstay of every breast imaging practice across the country.

That’s a wrap for this week’s review of news and happenings in the healthcare AI space. In closing, I’ll leave you with an invitation to learn more about the benefits of using an AI Hub to manage multiple applications across your clinical needs and offer you a personal demo of Ferrum’s platform and growing AI catalog.

If you have AI tips, suggestions, or resources you’d like to share, leave us a note below, and please feel free to suggest topics you would like to see covered in future posts.