IAEA activities to support quality and safety in x-ray breast imaging

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) assists its Member States in the application of nuclear technologies for human health, to ensure quality and safety in medical uses of radiation, including x-ray breast imaging. Ensuring quality and safety, entails support to diagnostic radiology medical physics. Relevant to the physics of x-ray breast imaging, the IAEA supports medical physics profession by providing guidance on quality assurance (QA), dosimetry and medical physics education and training, the establishment of digital mammography facilities and implementing new technologies for x-ray breast imaging, through coordinated research activities and development of training resources for medical physicists. Clinical deployment of Artificial Intelligence (AI) -based technologies in x-ray imaging highlights the need for educated and trained health professionals. The medical physicist is considered a key professional that needs to be involved as a part of a multidisciplinary team to introduce, apply, QA, and maintain AI applications effectively and safely in clinics. The recent IAEA activities are aimed at framing the roles and responsibilities of medical physicists in the field of implementation and utilization of AI in the medical uses of radiation and providing guidance to address the knowledge gap of current and future medical physicist in this field. The IAEA continues to support medical physics in x-ray breast imaging through coordinated research, the development of guidance, learning material, standardization and harmonization of quality assurance practices.