ARRS 2026: Five Takeaways Every Indian Radiologist Should Know

The American Roentgen Ray Society held its 2026 Annual Meeting from April 12 to 15 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. While RSNA gets more headlines, ARRS has always been the meeting where clinically practical education takes center stage. This year was no different. Here are five takeaways from ARRS 2026 that have direct relevance for radiologists practicing in India.

1. AI is moving from detection to workflow orchestration

The AI sessions at ARRS 2026 went beyond the familiar "AI detected a lung nodule" presentations. The focus shifted to how AI orchestrates entire reading workflows: prioritizing worklists based on clinical urgency, auto-populating structured report templates, routing studies to subspecialists, and flagging discrepancies between preliminary and final reads.

For Indian radiology departments processing high volumes with limited subspecialty coverage, this shift is significant. Workflow AI does not require a neuroradiologist or a cardiac imager to be on call. It routes the right study to the right reader at the right time, which is exactly the problem that high-volume Indian centers face daily.

2. Emergency radiology got a dedicated deep dive

ASER and ARRS collaborated on a head-to-toe emergency radiology course covering neuro trauma, thoracic vascular emergencies, abdominal injuries, and ER body MRI. The presentations emphasized subtle findings that are easy to miss under time pressure and evidence-based imaging strategies for acute care settings.

Emergency radiology remains one of the most underserved areas in Indian hospitals. Most district hospitals lack dedicated emergency imaging protocols, and general radiologists often read trauma CTs without structured training in the specific patterns that matter. The ARRS emergency sessions provide a curriculum that Indian residency programs could adapt directly.

3. Women's imaging is evolving beyond mammography

A dedicated categorical course on breast and pelvic imaging addressed current challenges and advances in women's imaging. The sessions covered abbreviated breast MRI protocols, contrast-enhanced mammography for intermediate-risk screening, and AI-assisted risk stratification that determines which patients need which imaging modality.

In India, where organized breast screening programs are limited and most cancer diagnoses happen at advanced stages, risk-stratified imaging could optimize the use of scarce MRI and ultrasound resources. Rather than screening everyone the same way, the approach matches the imaging modality to the patient's risk profile.

4. Generative AI in reporting: practical and controversial

Several sessions tackled the use of large language models for radiology report generation. The consensus: AI-drafted reports are already clinically usable for straightforward examinations, but they create accountability questions that the profession has not resolved. Who is responsible when an AI-drafted report contains a subtle error that the signing radiologist missed during review?

This question is particularly acute for Indian teleradiology, where report volumes per radiologist are among the highest in the world. The efficiency gains from AI drafting are real, but so is the risk of rubber-stamping. ARRS presenters emphasized that AI reporting tools need built-in audit mechanisms, not just speed.

5. On-demand access changes the value proposition

For the first time, ARRS 2026 offered comprehensive on-demand access to all sessions for up to a year after the meeting. This is a meaningful shift for Indian radiologists who face visa, travel, and cost barriers to attending international conferences. The educational content from ARRS, historically available only to in-person attendees, is now accessible to anyone willing to register.

For departmental education programs, journal clubs, and resident training, this on-demand library represents a significant resource. The quality of ARRS presentations, focused on clinical practice rather than pure research, maps well to the needs of practicing radiologists in India.