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C. Norman Coleman (ASTRO)

Allen S. Lichter

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in the news:
Breast Density Directly Related to Breast Cancer
New research suggests that there is a direct relationship between the density of breast tissue and the risk of developing tumors in dense areas of the breast. The results of the study were published in a recent issue of the open access journal Breast Cancer Research. The study's results strongly suggest that some aspects of dense breast tissue directly influence tumor development in breast tissue.

Mammographically dense areas of the breast consisting of glands, milk ducts and fibrous tissue have already been established as a risk factor for breast cancer. The risk of developing breast cancer is approximately five times higher in women in whom 60 percent or more of the total breast tissue is dense, compared to that of women with less than ten percent of dense breast tissue. Despite this knowledge, it is not known whether tumors tend to arise in areas of mammographically dense tissue, or if mammographic density is simply a marker of breast cancer risk.

In order to address this question, researchers from the University of Southern California, Los Angeles, studied the mammograms of 27 women diagnosed with ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS). These tumors inside the milk ducts have the potential to become invasive and spread to other tissues, and are the most common form of non-invasive breast cancer. DCIS tumors are usually visible as tiny flecks of calcium in a mammogram and can be easily differentiated from dense breast tissue.

For each woman, two independent mammography radiologist experts studied the mammograms of the affected breast or breasts. The radiologists then coded the DCIS tumor according to whether or not it was found in an area of mammographically dense tissue.

Of the 22 DCIS tumors over which the radiologists were in agreement, 21 tumors were classified as being in dense areas of the breast. Furthermore, the locations of the tumors in the breast correlated strongly with the area of the breast with the highest average percent density: the lateral-superior mammographic quadrant.

Overall, the results of the study show that DCIS occurs overwhelmingly in the areas of the breast that are mammographically dense, and occurs in the part of the breast that has the highest percent density on the mammogram. This relationship is not brought about by the presence of DCIS, and, according to the authors, this "suggests that some aspect of mammographically dense tissue directly influences the carcinogenic process in the local breast glandular tissue."

— BioMed

CT Reduces Negative Appendectomy Rate
Five years ago, the negative appendectomy rate at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), Boston, was 20 percent, but since the advent of CT screening, it has dropped to 3 percent, say MGH researchers. The negative appendectomy rate measures how often patients with symptoms of appendicitis have their appendix removed and then are diagnosed as not having acute appendicitis.

For the study, the researchers analyzed 663 patients who were examined by CT for suspected appendicitis. An appendectomy was performed on 268 of the CT-screened patients, and of these patients, only eight had a negative appendectomy.

"Prior to CT, the negative appendectomy rate was [higher] because there was no way to be sure whether appendicitis was present without surgery. Because CT is very accurate in imaging the appendix and is very good at finding other conditions that mimic appendicitis, the negative appendectomy rate following CT has fallen dramatically. Fewer people are having to undergo appendectomy because CT can find the normal appendix and can frequently determine what is wrong prior to surgery," says James T. Rhea, MD, lead author of the study, which was published in a recent issue of the American Journal of Roentgenology.

According to the study, if a patient is suspected of having appendicitis, CT can help before surgery to diagnose whether appendicitis is present or whether something else other than appendicitis is causing the patient's pain. "The patient's doctor should decide if CT is needed to increase the certainty that appendicitis is present or if something else is causing the problem, but in most patients, CT will be helpful in deciding whether to remove the appendix. I know that if I had symptoms that might be appendicitis, I'd want to have a CT scan," says Rhea.

— American Roentgen Ray Society

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business briefs
The University of Kuopio in Finland has ordered a Gamma Medica FLEX™ Pre-Clinical Imaging System from Gamma Medica Inc., Northridge, Calif. The dual modality SPECT/CT system will be housed in the university's department of biomedical nuclear magnetic resonance.

iCAD™ Inc., Nashua, N.H., signed a resale agreement with Viewport Medical Systems, San Rafael, Calif. Under the terms of the agreement, Viewport Medical Systems will resell the ClickCAD™ Fee-For-Procedure solution.

The Christus Santa Rosa Hospital-Medical Center, San Antonio, Texas, became the 100th site to install the Magnetom Avanto with Tim (Total Imaging Matrix) from Siemens Medical Solutions, Malvern, Pa.

Executive management from Infinitt Co. Ltd., Seoul, Korea, and SmartPACS, Phillipsburg, N.J., recently announced the signing of a joint venture agreement between the two PACS companies. One result of the agreement will be a revised company designation - SmartPACS will officially change its name to Infinitt North America Inc. According to the terms of the agreement, the official product line will be branded Infinitt; the service and financial models will be branded as SmartPACS EIMS.

Sanesco International, Asheville, N.C., entered into a long-term collaborative partnership with LDN, Nordhorn, Germany, a world-class reference and research laboratory. Sanesco also signed a licensing agreement with Capilab in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

InSiteOne Inc., Wallingford, Conn., signed an agreement with Consorta Inc., Schaumburg, Ill., to provide InDex™ integrated on- and off-site secure DICOM storage to Concorta's member hospitals.

Fonar Corp. of Melville, N.Y., sold and installed an Upright™ MRI at StandUp MRI of Riverhead, N.Y.

Winchester Hospital in Massachusetts chose the BlueSecure 2100 Controller from Bluesocket Inc., Burlington, Mass., to implement wireless applications that will provide state-of-the-art patient care.

Agfa-Gevaert, Mortsel, Belgium, concluded the acquisition of Heartlab Inc., Westerly, R.I., for $132.5 million. Agfa and Heartlab have been collaborating since December 2003, within a distribution agreement for Agfa's IMPAX™ for Cardiology.

Philips Medical Systems, Andover, Mass., has been awarded diagnostic imaging contracts from HealthTrust Purchasing Group (HPG), Brentwood, Tenn., a leading healthcare purchasing organization.

Siemens Medical Solutions, Malvern, Pa., and Gamma Medica Inc., Northridge, Calif., have reached the end of a 2003 marketing agreement established, which gave Siemens exclusive worldwide marketing rights for Gamma Medica's pre-clinical SPECT and SPECT/CT imaging products. Executives from Gamma Medica report that with Siemens' purchase of CTI and the overlap of CTI's pre-clinical products, Gamma Medica has chosen to move forward independently.

SourceOne Healthcare Technologies Inc., Mentor, Ohio, and Imaging Dynamics Company Ltd, Alberta, Canada, signed an exclusive distribution agreement giving SourceOne exclusive rights to sell IDC's Xplorer™ DR systems to all branches of the U.S. military and U.S. government agencies.

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association news
ASTRO Reveals Gold Medal Winners
The American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology (ASTRO) has awarded its 2005 Gold Medal awards to C. Norman Coleman, MD, and Allen S. Lichter, MD.

Coleman, the director of the radiation oncology sciences program and associate director of the radiation research program at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), Bethesda, Md., has excelled in the academic arena, reaching his apex in the university sector as professor and chairman of the department of radiation oncology at the Joint Center for Radiation Therapy at Harvard Medical School, Boston.

At NCI, Coleman spearheaded an effort at the National Institutes of Health in the wake of Sept. 11 by holding a workshop on radiological and nuclear terrorism in Dec. 2001. That workshop has become the blueprint for additional research and training in that area, and Coleman continues to advise both the Bush administration and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on the proper medical response to radiological and nuclear terrorism. In addition to his NCI duties, he now serves as a visiting professor in the department of radiation oncology at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore.

Lichter is dean of the University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, and has dedicated much of his professional career to teaching the next generation of radiation oncologists. After finishing his residency in radiation oncology at the University of California, San Francisco, Lichter began his career as an instructor in oncology, radiology and radiological science at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. He remained there until 1978 when he accepted a position to head the radiation therapy section in the radiation oncology branch at NCI. While at NCI, Lichter, along with other researchers, pioneered a study in breast cancer that proved a lumpectomy plus radiation therapy was as effective as a mastectomy for many breast cancer patients.

In 1984, Lichter became a professor of radiation oncology at the University of Michigan Medical School where he has remained since becoming dean in 1999. While at Michigan, Lichter, along with other colleagues, has been instrumental in the development of 3-D conformal radiation therapy.

— ASTRO

ACR Cautions Implementing IOM Recommendations
In response to a recent report released by the Institute of Medicine (IOM), the American College of Radiology (ACR) released a statement recognizing the impending crisis in staff resources facing the breast imaging community and agrees that measures must be instituted to attract and retain qualified personnel to the field.

However, the ACR expressed concern regarding the impact of the IOM's recommendations to impose additional mandatory practice auditing requirements. While these recommendations for more comprehensive tracking and follow-up likely will improve feedback to the imaging center, the ACR holds that implementing this new requirement varies considerably, and may add further disincentive to breast imaging practitioners.

Based on past experience, the ACR is concerned that the increased regulation will not be accompanied or followed by adequate resources to cover additional costs. The ACR suggests that the increase in incentives endorsed in the IOM recommendations should precede the imposition of additional regulatory requirements.

Mortality from breast cancer in the United States has decreased by 25 percent in the past decade, primarily due to early detection through mammography screening. Worsening workforce shortages threaten to severely limit access to breast imaging services. The ACR urges those charged with considering the recommendations of the IOM to be certain that any measures that are adopted are feasible, and allow for an adequate period of implementation, without reducing access for American women to the possible life-saving benefits of screening mammography.

— ACR

Scholarships Awarded for Chicago SVU Conference
The $5,000 educational grant from Philips Medical Systems, Andover, Mass., the Society for Vascular Ultrasound (SVU) has awarded scholarships to five SVU members to attend their 28th Annual Conference in Chicago. The 2005 scholarship winners are: Dusty Filliung, BSN, RN, RVT, of Ann Arbor, Mich.; Martin Orloski, RVT, of Saint Albans, Maine; Laura Roper, LPN, RVT, of Seffner, Fla.; Suzanne Wilson, PA, AD, RVT, of Bradenton, Fla.; and Colette Wilkey, RVT, of Battle Creek, Mich.

Scholarship applicants were asked to submit an essay explaining why SVU should award them one of the scholarships. A panel of judges met to discuss each of the 23 essays received and to determine the top five winning essay writers. The five scholarship winners used the $1,000 award to help pay for their conference registration fee, travel expenses, hotel room expenses and meal expenses.

— SVU

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movers & shakers
SourceOne Promotes Homes to EVP/CFO
SourceOne Healthcare Technologies Inc., Mentor, Ohio, has promoted Brett Homes to the position of executive vice president and CFO. Prior to this promotion, Homes served the company as senior vice president and CFO. Homes joined SourceOne in 2003 shortly after Los Angeles-based Platinum Equity acquired Diagnostic Imaging and Health Care Products to form SourceOne Healthcare Technologies.

Drawing from more than 20 years of financial and general management experience in corporate, entrepreneurial, consulting and public accounting environments, Homes has been responsible for all of the financial functions at SourceOne, including general accounting, financial planning and analysis, financial operations, credit and collections, treasury and tax.

In his new role as executive vice president and CFO, Homes will focus on achieving specific financial objectives for SourceOne, including increasing free cash flow, reducing operating expenses, improving earnings and assisting the executive team with acquisitions of new businesses and forging new partnerships with best-in-class medical imaging equipment manufacturers.

During the past 18 months, SourceOne closed 12 national distribution agreements, with many medical imaging equipment manufacturers, including Merge eFilm, Imaging Dynamics Company LTD., OREX, Barco, PenRad, CompuMed and Shimadzu Medical Systems, among others.

— SourceOne Healthcare Technologies

Boyse Joins Medicsight
London-based Medicsight has appointed Adam Boyse as product delivery director. He will be responsible for directing Medicsight's product delivery strategy.

Boyse joins Medicsight after nearly 15 years in the software development sector, most recently as vice president of software development at a life sciences software company. Boyse has diverse industry experience, including leading global software teams in the areas of life sciences, telecommunications and manufacturing.

"Medicsight is looking to expand on and enhance our current product portfolio by continuing to develop sophisticated and revolutionary image-analysis software," says Jamshid Dehmeshki, Medicsight's chief science officer. "Adam's extensive knowledge and experience will ensure that Medicsight's strong academic abilities are converted into leading commercial products."

— Medicsight

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