Ethics of Artificial Intelligence in Breast Imaging

Abstract

There is great interest in the development of artificial intelligence (AI) applications for medical imaging in general and specifically in breast imaging. Because of the scale of application and the potential for harm, there has been a parallel interest in assuring that these new technologies are scrutinized and applied in ethical ways. The four principles of autonomy, beneficence, non-maleficence, and justice are widely accepted as a framework for bioethical analysis. We incorporate a fifth principle of explicability (adapted from Floridi and Cowls) because of the unique considerations of AI. We review definitions of each of these principles and provide examples of their practical application to breast imaging.

Keywords: artificial intelligence; breast imaging; ethics; informatics; mammography.