Arrowe Park Hospital and Clatterbridge are among 64 NHS trusts that will get extra cash to help boost ground-breaking artificial intelligence (AI) to help clinicians diagnose lung cancer quickly and accurately.
The £21m of cash is being allocated to 64 NHS trusts across all regions of the country so they can deploy AI tools that analyse X-rays and CT scans. This means patients in Birkenhead, Bebington, and the rest of the Borough will benefit from faster diagnosis and treatment.
With over 600,000 chest X-rays performed each month in England, the deployment of this technology to more NHS trusts will support clinicians in their work with quicker, more accurate diagnosis of conditions.
The new tools will start being deployed in NHS hospitals for winter, which will help to ease pressures on the NHS and free up staff time.
Health and Social Care Secretary Steve Barclay said:
We are rolling out more cutting-edge AI technology across the NHS to help with quicker, more accurate diagnosis of lung cancer because patients deserve the best care possible.
AI is already being used in the NHS to halve treatment times for stroke patients and to assist doctors in analysing brain scans, reducing the time between admission and treatment by more than one hour - saving valuable staff time and improving patient recovery.
We’re building on this success to make sure lung cancer patients get the support they need, when they need it.
The use of AI in the NHS is already having a positive impact on outcomes for patients. AI tools are now live in over 90% of stroke networks in England - halving the time for stroke victims to get treatment in some cases, helping to cut waiting times.
The government has already invested £123 million into 86 AI technologies, which is helping patients by supporting stroke diagnosis, screening, cardiovascular monitoring and managing conditions at home.
