Woodhouse, Palina; Paez, Rafael; Meyers, Patrick; Lentz, Rob J.; Shojaee, Samira; Sharp, Kenneth; Baldi, Nikki; Maldonado, Fabien; Grogan, Eric L. “Leveraging Artificial Intelligence as a Safety Net for Incidentally Identified Lung Nodules at a Tertiary Center.” Journal of the American College of Surgeons 240, no. 4 (2025): 417-422. https://doi.org/10.1097/XCS.0000000000001275.
This study looked at how artificial intelligence (AI) can help doctors better manage lung nodules—small spots on the lungs that may be signs of something serious, like cancer. Researchers used a special AI tool that scans radiology reports from CT scans to flag any mention of a possible lung nodule that might need attention.
Over the course of one month, the AI reviewed more than 76,000 radiology reports and flagged 389 potentially important lung nodules. A lung specialist then checked these flagged reports. They found that 70% of the nodules were being properly followed up by doctors (through imaging, specialist referrals, etc.), but 30% were not.
Thanks to the AI tool, many of these overlooked cases were brought to the attention of doctors, which led to extra clinic visits and even some procedures. This shows that AI could play a big role in catching potentially serious lung issues early—especially those that might otherwise be missed.
