Cancer waiting times are set to fall thanks to new AI technology
that locates cancer cells 2.5 times quicker than doctors alone.
Game-changing AI will start being rolled out to every NHS
radiotherapy department in England in a matter of weeks – backed
by £15.5 million in new Government funding.
It works by automatically reviewing a CT or MRI scan, helping
doctors quickly distinguish between cancerous cells and healthy
organs and to prevent healthy organs from being damaged during
radiation treatment.
Trained health workers will of course review any report before
administering any treatment – helping tens of thousands of cancer
patients each year get faster treatment.
The UK is at the forefront of embracing and embedding AI into the
healthcare system, and with it already being used in 90% of
stroke units in England – which is speeding up diagnosis and
treatment.
Today's announcement is another major step to help cut NHS
waiting lists, relieve pressure on hospitals, free up staff time,
and support people in care settings to live more
independently.
This comes as the Prime Minister speaks at the AI Seoul Summit
today [Tuesday 21 May] – building on the global momentum that
Bletchley kickstarted, it will look at ways to harness the
potential of AI to help humanity and advance global cooperation
on AI safety. The two-day summit will look focus on three key
themes: innovation, safety, and inclusivity.
The Bletchley Summit – which took place last November – was the
first time ever that nations, AI firms, academia, and civil
society came together to consider the risks of AI and tackle them
together.
It resulted in the historic Bletchley Declaration, which was
signed by 27 countries and the EU. This committed the signatories
to take a global approach to a global issue - highlighting the
reality that risks arising from AI have no borders. The AI Seoul
Summit continues to harness this ‘Bletchley Effect' to take
further collaborative international action on AI safety, ensuring
the enormous benefits of the most powerful models are realised.
Prime Minister, , said:
“Thanks to Bletchley we have created a legacy of international
collaboration which means we are matching the pace of the
technology.
“AI-powered medical advances – like in radiotherapy – are
evidence of this and we must take advantage of them.
“That's why we are pumping £15.5 million into the NHS so it can
be rolled out across England – to help cut waiting lists and make
the UK the number one place for AI innovation.
This announcement runs alongside a series of cross-government
measures – announced this week – which are encouraging innovation
and harnessing the potential of AI. This includes:
- Finalists of this
year's Manchester Prize: a DSIT competition with an
annual £1 million prize pot dedicated to AI for public good
innovations. Announced today, it will support projects in energy,
environment and infrastructure, with each of the 10 teams
receiving £100,000.
- An AI tool that
will help work coaches support people back to work: From
the autumn, an aid to free up work coaches to spend more
time focusing on claimants' job needs to help them into work
quicker is set to rollout across all jobcentres
Health and Social Care Secretary said:
“This is an exciting breakthrough in our work to improve cancer
diagnosis and treatment, and AI is helping to make our healthcare
system faster, simpler and fairer.
“Thanks to such innovation, as well as our measures to help
people quit smoking, and our work to grow the number of doctors
in clinical oncology and radiology by a quarter since
2019, I'm pleased to say survival rates across almost
all types of cancer are improving.”
Technology Secretary said:
“When the Prime Minster and I hosted the world's first AI Safety
Summit at Bletchley Park last year, we put safely harnessing AI
right at the top of the global agenda.
“We knew that this rapidly evolving technology had the potential
to not only improve lives, but save them too. AI is already
transforming the world for the better, from cutting NHS waiting
times and speeding up diagnoses to tackling issues like climate
change through initiatives like the Manchester Prize.
“I'm in the Republic of Korea at this week's AI Seoul Summit to
discuss how the UK is leading the charge when it comes to
utilising AI to help humanity and driving forward the global
momentum I kickstarted at Bletchley on safely realising the
transformative benefits of AI.”
Dr Imogen Locke, national speciality adviser for
radiotherapy at NHS England said:
“The NHS is embracing AI and its benefits for cancer patients and
every radiotherapy department will soon be able to offer the
latest technology to help diagnose and treat patients more
quickly. We are seeing a record number of referrals for
suspected cancer, and game-changing tools like AI will help the
NHS continue the significant progress made in tackling the
longest waits for patients.”
