October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and for the lobular breast cancer community, 15 October marks Global Lobular Breast Cancer Awareness Day. The initiative was introduced by the US-based Lobular Breast Cancer Alliance (LBCA) in 2024 to help raise awareness of invasive lobular carcinoma (ILC), which accounts for around 15% of breast cancer diagnoses but remains comparatively underrepresented in research, awareness and disease-specific clinical innovation.
ILC is biologically and clinically distinct from other breast cancer subtypes. Its diffuse growth pattern can make tumours harder to detect on conventional imaging, and the disease may not present as a clearly defined lump. Its pathology can also be challenging to classify, particularly when distinguishing classic from non-classic forms. These features can complicate diagnosis, staging and treatment planning.
M4GIC-ILC was established to address some of these challenges through an ILC-specific artificial intelligence framework. Over the next three years, the project will bring together clinical, pathology, imaging and molecular data from several European centres and develop generative, foundation and predictive AI models tailored to the characteristics of ILC.
The aim is to improve several points along the patient pathway, including diagnosis and staging, relapse prediction and personalised treatment selection. Importantly, the project is also designed to work with real-world clinical data, where not every patient will have every type of information available.
At the centre of M4GIC-ILC will be a multi-agent AI system capable of coordinating specialised models and integrating the information available for an individual patient. The system is being designed to provide clinicians with explainable, uncertainty-aware and traceable decision support, supporting rather than replacing clinical expertise.
Progress in ILC depends not only on new technologies, but also on sustained collaboration between researchers, clinicians and patient advocates.
The European Lobular Breast Cancer Consortium (ELBCC) brings together discovery scientists, translational researchers and clinical experts with the goal of improving the understanding, diagnosis, treatment and prognosis of ILC. Several organisations participating in M4GIC-ILC, including KU Leuven, Institut Curie and UMC Utrecht, are also represented within the ELBCC community.
Patient advocacy is equally important. European Lobular Breast Cancer Advocates (ELBCA) brings together patient advocates from across Europe to raise awareness, share information and strengthen the patient voice in research and care. ELBCC and its advocates work closely to connect scientific progress with the priorities and lived experiences of people affected by ILC.
This Global Lobular Breast Cancer Awareness Day is an opportunity to make ILC more visible and to highlight why disease-specific research matters. Better awareness can support earlier recognition, stronger datasets, more representative research and ultimately more personalised care.
For M4GIC-ILC, this is closely aligned with the project’s central objective: to develop trustworthy AI tools that reflect the specific biology and clinical challenges of ILC and help clinicians make better-informed decisions for people affected by the disease.
Learn more about Global Lobular Breast Cancer Awareness Day on 15 October
