A computer together with one expert show the same effectiveness at detecting breast cancer as the two different radiologists, a new research suggests.

In a study involving 28,000 women, computer-aided detection (CAD) for screening mammography found 198 out of 227 cancers, in contrast with 199 out of the same number of cancers from double-reading, researchers said.

So, considering the results, "reading mammograms by a single reader using CAD” has rates of cancer detection similar to “films read by two expert readers," according to study's lead author, Dr. Fiona Gilbert, a professor of radiology at the University of Aberdeen in the United Kingdom.

In several European countries, such as the United Kingdom, a mammogram is usually read by two different experts. But in the U.S. the X-ray exam designed to detect breast cancer at an early stage is single-read, said Dr. Thomas Hall, director of breast imaging for Providence Hospital in Southfield, Michigan.

Screening mammography is recommended in women aged 50 to 70, every one or two years. However, several areas are short of specialists and therefore, women don’t receive breast screening invitations as often as they should.

The NHS Breast Screening Programme (NHSBSP) screens more than 1.7 million women per year. The National Health Service would like the screening to be offered to a larger age group, so as women aged 47 to 73 be included.

The findings of the study have been posted online on Oct. 1 in the New England Journal of Medicine.