TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — Doctors are finding new ways artificial intelligence can help them better care for their patients. 

Now a new study shows AI technology can be a major help in diagnosing deadly diseases, including cancer.

That study, published in the journal Lancet Oncology, used artificial intelligence to read more than 80,000 mammograms which were also reviewed by radiologists. Doctors using AI were able to detect 20 percent more cancers in the scans compared to radiologists working without the technology.

The study also showed AI cut a doctor’s mammogram reading workload almost in half.

“I think it is going to revolutionize the speed our patients receive care,” said Dr. Pete Chang at Tampa General Hospital. “Not only the speed in which our patients receive care but the quality of the diagnoses in the treatment plan and pathway.”

Dr. Change added he doesn’t see AI replacing doctors, but he believes it can become a powerful assistant.

“Whether it be a radiologist, a bedside physician, or a nurse, to really improve their workflow and help catch a potential issue, whether that be an abnormality of a chest x-ray or something going on clinically with a patient, in a more expedited manner,” Chang said.

While some hospitals are slowly beginning to use AI in administration and scheduling software, experts said using it regularly to read scans or other aspects of patient care is likely still years away.