AI Advances Breast Cancer Prevention and Smallpox Biosecurity

Editors' Note

While the consequences of artificial intelligence (AI) remain unclear for many industries, the technology's abilities to aid health care are coming into focus. Kicking off this week's edition, journalist Marilyn Fenichel reviews recent advances in using AI to diagnose and prevent breast cancer.

Venturing into a different tech arena, Michael Leedom, an emergency physician based in Baltimore, takes readers across several countries in Africa where aerial drones are transforming last-mile humanitarian deliveries.

Rounding off this week's tech dive, authors from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and the O'Neill Institute analyze the state of smallpox biosecurity in a new era of technology.

Next, the edition features a pair of stories to continue this year's worldwide discussion on reproductive health. The U.S. Supreme Court is set to rule on Idaho v. United States, which could decide whether emergency rooms can perform abortions during life-threatening situations. Medical experts from Physicians for Human Rights outline why the stakes are high for health workers, pregnant patients, and abortion care.

Then heading to Zimbabwe, health writer Derick Matsengarwodzi speaks with community activists who are calling for a legislative review of the Termination of Pregnancy Act. Despite allowing for the lawful termination of pregnancy in some scenarios, the decades-old law comes with restrictions that motivate many young women to still seek unsafe abortions.

Until next week! — Nsikan Akpan, Managing Editor (Caroline is on vacation)