The European Union is investing 3.1 million Euro to develop better and quicker breast cancer diagnostics through the HAMAM project. This project is developing a prototype workstation to help diagnose breast cancer by integrating multi-modal images resulting from mammography, magnetic resonance imaging and other technologies as well as patient information. Doctors will be able to compare those multi-modal images side by side while viewing the patient’s history and medical analyses.

Each year 350,000 new cases of breast cancer are detected in the European Union, which accounts for 26% of all new cancer cases among women. These figures, together with the fact that 17% of women dying from cancer each year die from breast cancer, put early detection at the forefront of the issues related to the fight against breast cancer.

The lack of effective technology to assist in cases that are difficult to diagnose means some cases go undetected or are incorrectly diagnosed.In order to tackle this problem, the European Union funds through the Seventh Framework Programme, project such as HAMAM which aims to avoid unnecessary biopsies as well as unsuccessful therapies by integrating multi-modal images and patient information on a single clinical workstation. As a result, it will possible to compare imaging modalities including X-ray mammography, tomosynthesis, magnetic resonance imaging, 2D/3D ultrasound and positron emission mammography.

The three-year project, which started in 2008 and received €3.1 million from the EU, ensures that scientists, clinicians, and IT experts work together to collect all the existing patient data in a common database. More specifically, the project is developing clinical software tools that integrate imaging and quantitative data and combine it with personalised risk profiles for developing breast cancer, based on genetic information and family history.

The project’s clinical advisory board involves leading experts in breast cancer diagnosis from six EU member states (Belgium, Germany, Italy, The Netherlands, Sweden and the UK) as well as from the US, and clinical tests will be undertaken in hospitals in Berlin, Dundee and Nijmegen. The tests will be supported by IT experts from several universities in Europe.

EU fight against breast cancer

Previous projects brought major advances in European breast cancer diagnosis, meaning that today Europe is the world leader in diagnostic systems for digital mammography. With HAMAM, Europe will strengthen its leadership in the area of image-based breast cancer diagnoses, a branch where the Union is acting strongly with initiatives such as the BASIS project funded with 10.5 million Euro and aiming to unlock the genetic code of breast cancer.

The European Union plans to cut cancer rates by 15% by 2020, as it was put forward by the Communication on a European Partnership for Action Against Cancer issued by the European Commision in June 2009, and is therefore attacking cancer on two fronts: by encouraging a healthy lifestyle and funding research into cancer treatments. The European Partnership for Action Against Cancer will allow scientists, doctors and patients' groups to work together by providing a framework for identifying and sharing information, capacity and expertise in cancer prevention and control.

More EU-funded information and communication technologies research success stories, including the HAMAM project, will be presented at ICT 2010, Europe's largest ICT research event, to take place in Brussels from 27 to 29 September 2010.