Digital diagnosis: AI's crucial future role in the NHS

Researchers at an Oxford hospital have developed a system that uses artificial intelligence to diagnose scans for heart disease and lung cancer – potentially saving billions of pounds by enabling the diseases to be picked up much earlier. The technology is due to become available for free in NHS hospitals this summer, and the results from clinical trials have found that the system can do a lot better than consultants. At the moment, of the 60,000 heart scans carried out each year, 12,000 are reportedly misdiagnosed at an estimated cost of £600 million. Geneticist Sir John Bell, told BBC News that AI could "save the NHS". "There is about £2.2bn spent on pathology services in the NHS. You may be able to reduce that by 50%. AI may be the thing that saves the NHS".