AI BREAKTHROUGH PREDICTS BREAST CANCER SPREAD, SAVING LIVES

An artificial intelligence (AI) model could help doctors predict more accurately whether an aggressive type of breast cancer will spread. Since the lymph nodes under the arm are one of the first places breast cancer can spread in women with triple-negative breast cancer, scientists in London have developed a programme to detect changes in these tissues.

Patients in these situations will probably require more intensive care, but the AI model, according to researchers, could aid in treatment planning and provide patients with comfort regarding the likelihood of triple-negative breast cancer spreading.

"By demonstrating that lymph node changes can predict whether triple-negative breast cancer will spread, we've built on our growing understanding of the significant role that immune response can play in understanding a patient's prognosis," said Dr Anita Grigoriadis, who oversaw the study at the Breast Cancer Now Unit at King's College London.

More than 5,000 lymph nodes from 345 patients who donated them to biobanks like the Breast Cancer Now Tissue Bank were used by the researchers to test their AI model for the study, which was published in The Journal of Pathology.

The likelihood of breast cancer spreading to other organs could be determined by the model. The team also discovered that the AI model was capable of making this prediction even when the breast cancer cells had not yet spread to the organs by simply analysing the immune responses in the lymph nodes.

The researchers hope to test their AI model in clinical trials as one of the next steps. "We're planning to test the model further at centres across Europe to make it even more robust and precise," Dr Grigoriadis continued. "The NHS is rapidly making the switch from examining tissue on glass slides under a microscope to using computers. To help women with this difficult-to-treat breast cancer, we want to take advantage of this change and develop AI-powered software based on our model for pathologists to use."

Breast Cancer Now's Dr Simon Vincent, director of research, support, and influencing, stated: "Each year, about 8,000 UK women receive diagnoses of triple-negative breast cancer, a more aggressive type of breast cancer that frequently has worse prognoses."