Middle East's first full-scale AI adoption for national screening marks Lunit's latest milestone amid rapid expansion of global cancer screening initiative
SEOUL, South Korea, July 24, 2024 -- Lunit (KRX:328130.KQ), a leading provider of AI-powered solutions for cancer diagnostics and therapeutics, today announced the implementation of its AI-powered breast cancer detection solution, Lunit INSIGHT MMG, in Qatar's national breast cancer screening program. This marks the first nationwide adoption of AI in a national-level breast screening workflow in the Middle East. The partnership, set for an initial period of five years, demonstrates a long-term commitment to advancing breast cancer screening in Qatar.
▲ Lunit successfully integrated Lunit INSIGHT MMG into "Screen for Life" program of Qatar's Primary Health Care Corporation (PHCC)
Starting June 2024, Qatar's Primary Health Care Corporation (PHCC) has integrated Lunit INSIGHT MMG into its "Screen for Life" program, the country's national breast and bowel cancer screening initiative. The AI solution aims to enhance early detection of breast cancer, potentially reducing missed diagnoses and improving survival rates in Qatar's triennial screening program.
"Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women in Qatar, accounting for 32% of all female cancer cases[1]," said Dr. Sheikha Abu Sheikha, Director of Early Detection Programs at PHCC. "To address this, we're integrating Lunit's AI as a crucial second opinion for our radiologists. As the first country in the Middle East to implement AI across the entire screening program, we're reinforcing Qatar's commitment to high-quality healthcare for women across the country."
At a glance
- Company
- Lunit
- Ticker
- KRX: 328130.KQ
- Announcement
- Partnership
- Location
- Qatar
Key figures
- Initial partnership period
- five years
- Share of female cancer cases in Qatar attributed to breast cancer
- 32%
- Radiologists reviewing each mammogram
- two
People
- Dr. Sheikha Abu SheikhaDirector of Early Detection Programs at PHCC
- Brandon SuhCEO of Lunit
Products and programs
The implementation follows a successful retrospective validation phase that began in March 2023. Satisfied with the performance and added value, two radiologists now read each mammogram while referring to Lunit INSIGHT MMG's results, improving accuracy and efficiency in the screening process.
Lunit's success in Qatar is part of a broader trend of the company's expansion in business-to-government (B2G) cancer screening initiatives worldwide. Notable recent deployments include:
- Australia: Supplying Lunit INSIGHT MMG to BreastScreen New South Wales
- Sweden: Delivering Lunit INSIGHT MMG to Capio S:t Göran Hospital, marking the first instance where AI replaced one human reader in breast screening
- Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: Providing the Lunit INSIGHT suite to Seha Virtual Hospital, connecting over 150 hospitals
- Iceland: Implementing Lunit INSIGHT MMG for national breast screening, the first European country to deploy AI for the entire population
"Our collaboration with Qatar's PHCC for the 'Screen for Life' will equip healthcare providers with a powerful new tool to enhance medical diagnostics," said Brandon Suh, CEO of Lunit. "As we expand into national screening programs worldwide, we're enhancing early cancer detection and reshaping preventive care. Each implementation brings us closer to our vision of making AI-assisted cancer screening more accurate and accessible to people around the world, regardless of their location."
The "Screen for Life" program, implemented by Qatar's PHCC, is a national initiative offering free breast and bowel cancer screening to eligible residents. This cornerstone of Qatar's public health strategy aims to promote early detection through education, awareness, and accessible screening services.
[1] Qatar Cancer Information Center: Cancer Incidence Report 2019
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In brief
Lunit says Qatar’s Primary Health Care Corporation began using its Lunit INSIGHT MMG breast-imaging AI in the national “Screen for Life” program in June 2024. The deployment makes Qatar the first country in the Middle East to use AI throughout a national breast-screening workflow, according to the announcement. The arrangement has an initial term of five years and followed a retrospective validation phase that started in March 2023. The company says two radiologists now review each mammogram with the AI results as an additional reference. PHCC cited breast cancer’s share of female cancer cases in Qatar as a reason for the implementation. Lunit also described other cancer-screening deployments in Australia, Sweden, Saudi Arabia and Iceland as part of its international expansion.
Key takeaways
- Qatar’s PHCC integrated Lunit INSIGHT MMG into its national “Screen for Life” program starting in June 2024.
- Lunit describes the deployment as the Middle East’s first use of AI across a national breast-screening workflow.
- The partnership has an initial five-year term and followed validation that began in March 2023.
- Two radiologists now review mammograms with the AI system’s results as an additional reference.
Earlier from Lunit
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- Lunit Achieves Historic Milestone: 100 Peer-Reviewed Papers Published on Its AI Medical Imaging Suite
- Lunit Partners with Radiobotics to Enhance Diagnostic Synergies in AI Medical Imaging
- Lunit's AI Demonstrates Up to 70% Workload Reduction and Enhanced Accuracy in Breast Cancer Screening: Study in European Radiology Reveals