Lunit Enters Final Stage of Breast Cancer Screening Program with New South Wales Government in Australia

Medical AI company Lunit announced on the 9th that it has begun the actual clinical operation of its AI mammography image analysis solution, 'Lunit Insight MMG,' in the BreastScreen NSW (BSNSW) program run by the New South Wales (NSW) government in Australia.

Australia operates the national 'BreastScreen Australia' program for early detection of breast cancer. As part of this, screening programs are operated by each state, and BSNSW, responsible for NSW, provides free breast cancer screening services to women aged 40 and over, with approximately 370,000 screenings conducted annually.

The BSNSW project is recognized as the world's first case of an AI solution being adopted in a national cancer screening program, marking a new milestone in the public healthcare sector.

Lunit has been operating the BSNSW project in three phases since the second half of 2022. In phase 1, about 650,000 mammography images were analyzed to demonstrate the accuracy and reliability of the AI technology. In phase 2, approximately 200,000 screening data were used to optimize and validate the clinical application through prospective validation.

Phase 3 is the final stage and the actual operational phase in medical settings. Lunit Insight MMG will assist in interpreting about 31,000 mammography screenings annually for women aged 50 to 59 undergoing screening. Upon final confirmation of performance through phase validation, Lunit will renew the BSNSW operational contract for the next five years until 2029 without additional bidding, expecting stable revenue growth.

Seobeom Seok, CEO of Lunit, stated, "The BSNSW project is the world's first attempt to explore the role of AI in a national cancer screening program." He added, "The start of actual clinical operation of Lunit Insight MMG is a very meaningful turning point."

Starting with the BSNSW project, Lunit was also selected for the Iceland national breast cancer screening program this year. Currently, it is participating in cancer screening programs in several countries including Sweden, Singapore, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar, accelerating its entry into the global cancer screening market.