Breast cancer is one of the most common types of cancer worldwide, affecting more than two million people each year. As in the case of other types of cancers, early detection is crucial to improve survival rates. In this context, artificial intelligence is presented as a tool to assist in the detection process with greater accuracy and at the earliest possible stage.
What is the breast cancer screening process like? The patient undergoes a test called mammography, which consists of an X-ray of the breast. Subsequently, the specialist examines the results in search of any abnormality that would indicate whether or not the patient should undergo further tests. According to the National Cancer Institute, mammograms fail to detect 20% of breast cancers. AI advances in this field show that it is capable of detecting breast cancer with the same accuracy as such a specialist.
Artificial intelligence tools are trained using a set of mammograms with signs of cancer, so they can learn to identify patterns or characteristics associated with the presence of malignant tumors. In this way, AI has been able to detect possible tumors up to five years earlier.
How does AI intervene in the detection process? The tool indicates those areas in the mammogram that the specialist should review more closely, being able to detect changes that the professional cannot see with the naked eye. It also has the ability to compare mammograms of the same person taken at different times.
More and more countries are incorporating these tools into the screening process. For example, we find the case of Mia, an artificial intelligence tested in several centers in the United Kingdom. This tool analyzed approximately 10,000 mammograms, identifying 11 as suspicious. In the end, those 11 mammograms turned out to be cases of cancer, not diagnosed by doctors. According to the information provided after the fact, one of the 11 cases was a 6 mm tumor. Those tumors smaller than 15 mm have a 90% survival rate over the next 5 years.
There are other tools such as CHIEF (Clinical Histopathology Image Evaluation Facility), which is capable of performing detection tasks in different types of cancer. Through images, it is capable of detecting cancerous cells and also of predicting the patient’s chances of survival. It has been tested on up to 19 types of cancer and 15 million images. The results of the tests performed indicate that it achieved an accuracy of close to 94% in cancer detection in 15 data sets containing images of 11 types of cancer, distinguishing those cases of short- and long-term survival.
In addition to helping in the detection process, professionals seek to find the best treatment according to the patient’s case, in this case, the future of the tools is focused on obtaining information on the speed of growth or if recurrence is possible.
In conclusion, artificial intelligence is positioned as an essential tool in the early detection of cancer, speeding up response times at all stages of the process and offering great hope in the fight against this type of disease.
At Serquo, we are committed to accessibility and equity in health, contributing to reducing inequalities in early diagnosis. We believe that technology should be a catalyst for social change, and we ensure that our solutions are not only innovative, but also inclusive, promoting global wellbeing and improving people’s quality of life. We offer advice to ensure safe and effective implementation of AI. Our approach focuses on designing customized solutions that fit the specific needs of each business, maximizing the advantages of these tools. We invite you to contact us for an assessment and discover how AI can safely and effectively transform your business.