Doctors say that AI can help detect up to 30% more breast cancer cases and that the technology will transform diagnosis and treatment in the years ahead, following recent research on it uses.
The system involves a mammogram being read by both a radiologist and an AI tool. It also has been found to cut workload for radiologists by over 40%.
The charity Breast Cancer Ireland said it is one of the most important developments seen in breast cancer screening in decades, and follows major international research in Sweden and South Korea.
Professor Nuala Healy, consultant radiologist at the Breast Cancer Ireland-funded Beaumont Breast Centre, said that AI gives breast radiologists "an additional pair of expert eyes", prioritising the most challenging mammograms and helping to detect subtle, early cancers and easing the routine workload so that radiologists can focus on complex patient imaging and procedures.
AI has been found to help identify smaller, earlier-stage cancers, when treatment is most effective and is expected to be available here in hospitals soon.
Watch: AI gives breast radiologists 'an additional pair of expert eyes'
It is also being used to identify lung cancers.
Doctors say that some breast cancers can be hard to spot on a mammogram, in particular in patients with dense breast tissue.
A survey of 1,500 women attending the symptomatic clinic at the Beaumont Breast Centre found that almost half see AI as a good idea.
Patients remain cautious and 66% said they would still prefer a radiologist to review their mammogram, even if AI is shown to be more accurate.
Watch: AI will transform treatment, breast cancer survivor says
Today is World Cancer Day.
Breakthrough Cancer Research has announced a €1m investment in a new All-Ireland Cancer network, aimed at improving pancreatic cancer outcomes.
It said that this is one of the most difficult to treat cancers on the island, with five year survival rates at just 14% in the Republic and in single digits in Northern Ireland.
Breast cancer survivor Avril Tierney, from Co Laois, said that anything that is going to improve things for patients like using AI is amazing.
She said the fact that doctors may be able to get earlier detection or better targeted therapies is phenomenal.
Avril was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2019 after she found a lump in her right breast.
She was referred to St Vincent's University Hospital in Dublin for assessment with a biopsy, a mammogram and an ultrasound.
Avril was diagnosed with stage 4 metastatic breast cancer, and doctors also later found a lump in her lung and part of her lung had to be removed.
She said news of her cancer diagnosis was horrendous to absorb and her whole life was thrown up in the air.
She underwent chemotherapy, surgery and then radiotherapy.
Avril still attends hospital every two weeks for treatment, and is receiving immunotherapy and chemotherapy which she said she will need for the rest of her life.
She is in her 40s and originally from Dublin, but lives in Laois with her husband and two daughters, aged 14 and 10 years of age.
Avril said she went back to work and has been working for the last three years and each day working to enjoy her life.
She is a campaigner for Breast Cancer Ireland, and seeking to raise greater awareness of the disease, and emphasise the importance of investing in research in this area, including the use of AI.
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