Artificial intelligence detects breast cancer up to 10 years early

A study published in the journal ‘Radiology’ reveals that artificial intelligence systems can identify early signs of breast cancer up to six years, and in some cases up to ten years, before clinical diagnosis. The research, which involved Greek scientists, utilized data from nearly 89,000 mammograms from 31,394 women in Sweden between 2008 and 2019.

Researchers evaluated three commercial AI systems using the ‘Validation of Artificial Intelligence for Breast Imaging’ database. The findings showed that AI could detect signs much earlier than human radiologists. Specifically, AI identified signs six years prior to diagnosis in 20% of cases, four years prior in 25%, and two years prior in 39%. Approximately 15% of cases were identified up to ten years in advance.

In a separate genetic research development, an international team identified new risk genes and variants associated with hereditary breast and ovarian cancer. The research focused on DNA repair genes, identifying new pathogenic variants that could lead to more accurate genetic testing and targeted preventive interventions.