Nearly 700,000 women are set to participate in an NHS artificial intelligence (AI) breast cancer screening trial in England.
Five different AI platforms will be tested across 30 sites starting in April to determine whether the technology can speed up diagnoses and free up radiologists.
This announcement comes as the government launches a call for evidence to help shape its national cancer plan, which is due to be unveiled later this year.
AI is already being tested in various NHS applications, including cancer treatment delivery, managing waiting lists, and checking cancer scans. However, this is the largest trial to date focused on breast cancer.
Women who are already scheduled for routine NHS screenings will be invited to take part in the £11m Early Detection using Information Technology in Health (Edith) trial.
Screening is available to women aged 50 to 53, with subsequent screenings offered every three years until they turn 71. During appointments, mammograms—X-rays used to detect cancers too small to see or feel—are taken.
Step Forward
Currently, two radiologists are required to review each screening image to ensure accuracy. The hope is that AI will allow one radiologist to complete the process, enabling the other to see more patients and reduce waiting times.
Over two million mammograms are conducted annually under the screening programme, so the AI trial could significantly ease the workload for radiologists.
Department of Health and Social Care Chief Scientific Adviser, Prof. Lucy Chappell, said the study could represent a “significant step forward.”
Health Secretary Wes Streeting added that this trial should be just the beginning of a broader improvement in cancer care. He called for “urgent action” given that cancer survival rates in the UK lag behind other countries and promised to publish a national cancer plan aimed at positioning Britain as a global leader in saving lives from cancer.
As part of this plan, the government has launched a call for evidence, encouraging patients, staff, and experts to submit ideas via the Change NHS website.
However, the Royal College of Radiologists has raised concerns, stating that while AI has “immense potential,” the NHS is still 30% short of the radiologists it needs.
“This study will take time to yield results. The need to build radiology capacity remains urgent,” the College added.
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