Launch of IARC Cervical Cancer Image Bank to aid AI cancer detection

The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) has launched the IARC Cervical Cancer Image Bank website, to accelerate innovation and ensure the quality of machine learning algorithms for the early detection of cervical precancer and cancer. The launch of this new image bank, on 17 November 2021, marks the first anniversary of the launch of the World Health Organization (WHO) Global Strategy to Accelerate the Elimination of Cervical Cancer as a Public Health Problem.

The goal of this image bank of cervical epithelium, which includes normal features, benign changes, precancers, and cancers, is to facilitate the development, evaluation, and validation of artificial intelligence (AI) image interpretation algorithms for the early detection of cervical cancer and precancer.

The IARC Cervical Cancer Image Bank, which is expected to include more than 57 000 images from almost 5500 cases, will continue to prospectively collect images from a number of varied clinical settings for use in the development of AI image interpretation algorithms. Retrospectively collected images may be added if the image collection process and image quality meet the stringent set of eligibility criteria and if the images pass an assessment by a team of experts.

IARC plays an instrumental role in the WHO Cervical Cancer Elimination Initiative by providing data and recommendations to support the implementation of effective screening, vaccination, and other cancer control policies for different settings.

Visit the IARC Cervical Cancer Image Bank