Expert-led chatbot tells you if common aches and pains are a sign of women's cancer - here's how to use it

A new AI chatbot that can flag warning signs of deadly female cancers in minutes has been launched by the UK's leading women's cancer charity.The Eve Appeal's tool analyses patients' symptoms before revealing if they could be at risk of womb, ovarian, cervical, vulval or vaginal cancers. The launch follows a series of investigations by the organisation that found existing AI tech was 'unreliable' and gave inaccurate advice about common symptoms.Last year The Eve Appeal tested Google's AI Overview feature, which generates summaries of search results, and said it provided 'completely wrong information' about cervical screening tests.The charity also said the answers appeared different when asking identical questions at another time.Earlier this year it tested ChatGPT, the world's most popular AI software, and claimed it missed a crucial red flag symptom of ovarian cancer - the deadliest gynaecological cancer. Some two thirds of Britons admit to Googling health symptoms, according to pollsPersistent bloating that does not improve after dietary changes is a key warning sign of the disease, but the charity said the chatbot instead suggested the patient may have irritable bowel syndrome.The charity's investigation also found that AI tools did not recognise vulval itching as a sign of vulval cancer and provided inaccurate information about how often women can receive cervical screening in the UK. It has now developed its own tool - powered by AI but made with verified, expert-led information - so that women can receive professional advice and avoid the 'online wild west' of information.Available 24 hours a day, the service, named Ask Eve Assist, can direct women with concerning symptoms to specialist nurses working for the charity. More than 22,000 diagnoses of gynaecological cancer are made each year in the UK, and the diseases kill around 21 women each day, figures show.Women are more likely to die when the disease is diagnosed late. For example, around 90 per cent of women diagnosed with ovarian cancer at stage one, the earliest stage, survive for five years or more. However, this falls to just 15 per cent among those diagnosed at stage four - the latest stage. The graphic shows the warning signs of ovarian cancer, including bloating and back painThe Eve Appeal said demand for its nurse-led Ask Eve advice service has risen sharply since the closure of Jo's Cervical Cancer Trust, which assisted women with cervical cancer until 2024.It hopes the AI tool will manage this demand.'As a nurse, one of the hardest parts of the growing demand for Ask Eve was knowing that many people required more intensive support than we had time to provide,' said Helen Hyndman, Ask Eve lead nurse.'Ask Eve Assist has helped us manage this pressure by safely answering routine questions, allowing us to spend more time with those who need specialist care.'Nothing can replace speaking to a nurse, but Ask Eve Assist helps us make immediate support available to people when they need it.'Athena Lamnisos, chief executive of the charity, added: 'Since the closure of Jo's Trust, demand for our Ask Eve service has soared.'Meanwhile, in England, around 600,000 people are sitting on gynaecological waiting lists, anxiously searching through an online wild west for answers.'The mistakes made by online AI platforms could be fatal. 'For instance, we found AI tools incorrectly suggesting that smear tests detect vaginal cancer, which could leave someone falsely reassured and delay them seeking help.'That's why we developed Ask Eve Assist: to provide immediate trusted information while ensuring complex inquiries are signposted to specialist support.'The tool was trained using verified information from the charity's website and was tested by 359 people before launch. The charity said one in 20 users required further assistance from specialist nurses. Gemma Wilson, an Ask Eve service user who has womb cancer, said: 'If this had been around when I was diagnosed, it would have made a world of difference.'When I was awake at 3am worrying about what to expect at my procedure, I could have asked Ask Eve Assist rather than waiting until the morning.'The tool can be accessed by visiting The Eve Appeal's website, and by clicking the red button in the bottom right hand corner that says 'Ask a Question'.