Brain imaging, clinical decision support, detection of eye diseases... artificial intelligence promises to revolutionize the tasks and uses of medical diagnosis. We take stock of the progress and limits of these new technologies applied to health.
"Almost all fields of artificial intelligence have applications in the field of health. "The conclusion of the Stratégie France IA report submitted to the government in March 2017 speaks for itself. Medicine seems to have entered the data age and artificial intelligence (AI) will be a valuable tool in the future, particularly for diagnostic assistance.
The breast cancer
Breast cancer affects 1 in 8 women in France. It is the leading cause of cancer death in women. Early treatment significantly improves the prognosis. Reminder of everything you need to know about this cancer on the occasion of Rose October.
Breast cancer is the most frequently diagnosed cancer in women and the most deadly. Breast cancer can also affect men but in a very small proportion (less than 1% of all cases). For the past 25 years, October has been an opportunity for women to take part in free breast cancer screening during Pink October.
This pathology develops from the cells of the mammary gland: it is called adenocarcinoma. "A cell of the mammary gland is transformed and suddenly develops in an anarchic manner; the resulting cells proliferate without stopping and can migrate to other parts of the body. They then metastasize, which can reach bones, organs such as the liver or the lungs," explains Professor Jean-Yves Pierga, head of the Medical Oncology Department at the Institut Curie. These cells develop from the epithelium that borders the galactophoric ducts (in which milk circulates).
The old way to detect breast cancer
consulting a doctor if you notice any changes in your breasts: a lump or lump in the breast or under an arm (armpit); changes in the skin (retraction, redness, swelling or orange peel appearance); changes in the nipple or areola - the area around the nipple - (retraction, change in colour, oozing or discharge); changes in the shape of the breasts. These signs do not necessarily mean that cancer is present, but should be reported to the doctor.
a clinical breast examination (palpation), recommended every year from the age of 25. This quick and painless examination allows the detection of any abnormality. It can be carried out by a general practitioner, a gynaecologist or a midwife.
a screening mammogram (x-ray examination) combined with a clinical breast examination, offered every two years to women aged 50 to 74 years in the absence of apparent symptoms or risk factors. Additional ultrasound may be offered if necessary. As part of the organised screening programme, set up since 2004 for women aged between 50 and 74, mammograms deemed normal are systematically read a second time, for safety reasons, by another expert radiologist. Like any medical procedure, breast cancer screening has benefits and limitations, which it is important to know before making a decision.
specific follow-up modalities, according to their level of risk, for women with a personal or family medical history or certain genetic predispositions.
The way to use artificial intelligence in medicine
By using the medical knowledge it possesses, the machine acquires new knowledge, just as a human being does: the more he knows, the more he learns," says Amedeo Napoli, research director at the Lorraine Laboratory for Research in Computer Science and Applications1. 1 His team is "digging through medical data to give it to an intelligent system and create a self-directed learning loop.
