Researchers use artificial intelligence to better detect breast cancer

Health researchers at Houston Methodist Hospital have developed an artificial intelligence application they cite as being 30 times faster than human doctors and 99% accurate in reading and interpreting mammograms. Houston Methodist used the artificial intelligence software to evaluate mammograms and pathology reports of 500 breast cancer patients. The software scanned patient charts, collected diagnostic features and correlated mammogram findings for breast cancer. Clinicians then used the results, like the expression of tumor proteins, to accurately predict each patient's probability of a breast cancer diagnosis, the hospital says. In the U.S., 12.1 million mammograms are performed annually, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.