Oncology Imaging

Medical imaging has become integral to cancer care, assessing the stage and location of cancerous tumors. By utilizing powerful imaging modalities including CT, MRI, MRA and PET/CT, oncology imaging radiologists are able to assist referring physicians in the detection and diagnosis of cancer.

Accuray to buy TomoTherapy for $277M

Accuray, a radiosurgery company, has signed a definitive agreement to acquire TomoTherapy, a developer of radiotherapy technologies, for approximately $277 million.

CRT: TAVI reimbursement considerations in U.S. weighed

WASHINGTON, D.C.--If transcatheter aortic valve implantations (TAVI) become an approved technique in the U.S., the potential reimbursement will depend on the payment model utilized by the U.S. healthcare system, according to a Feb. 28 presentation by David J. Cohen, MD, director of cardiovascular research at Saint Lukes Mid America Heart Institute in St. Louis, Mo., during the 2011 annual Cardiovascular Research Technologies (CRT) meeting.

AR: Pulmonary infection CAD shows promise for H1N1

Texture analysis may offer a quantitative method to differentiate abnormal and normal lung regions in patients with severe H1N1 infection and provide standardized, automated detection of abnormal areas, according to a study published in this month's Academic Radiology.

CRT: Todays cath labs need to be run 'like a business'

WASHINGTON, D.C.--Cath lab managers are increasingly facing more pressure -- both from within the hospital and externally from new federal initiatives such as healthcare reform and decreasing Medicare reimbursements -- which require increased flexibility and ever-evolving process plans, according to Steven Simms, RN, director of the cardiac cath lab at Washington Hospital Center in Washington, D.C., during his Feb. 27 presentation at the annual Cardiovascular Research Technologies (CRT) meeting.

AJR: MRI may be cheaper, rad-free method of lymphoma staging

Whole body diffusion-weighted MRI in lymphoma patients may yield staging results largely equal to those of the standard 18F-FDG PET/CT, while delivering no radiation and a more economical alternative, according to a study published in the March issue of the American Journal of Roentgenology. However, further studies are required to confirm the role of MRI.

Hologic to once again pursue SenoRx patent infringement

Womens diagnostic imaging systems developer Hologic has won an appeal reinstating the validity of its claims that SenoRx violated Hologics patent on a breast brachytherapy product.

HIMSS: Specialty EMRs flood the market, challenging interoperability

ORLANDO, Fla.--Because each medical specialty has unique information needs and data types not represented in "standard" EMRs, John H. Varga, MD, physician informaticist with the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), illustrated the diversity of process workflow, analytic requirements and available tools among the various specialties in an exclusive interview.

ASTRO: Palliative radiotherapy for bone metastases guideline available

The American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) Clinical Affairs and Quality Committee has developed an evidence-based guideline, published Jan. 28 in the International Journal of Radiation Oncology*Biology*Physics, with the goal of standardizing the optimal use of radiation therapy in treating bone metastases. The guideline authors concluded that radiotherapy is a successful and time efficient method by which to palliate pain and/or prevent the morbidity of bone metastases.

Around the web

RBMA President Peter Moffatt discusses declining reimbursement rates, recruiting challenges and the role of artificial intelligence in transforming the industry.

Deepak Bhatt, MD, director of the Mount Sinai Fuster Heart Hospital and principal investigator of the TRANSFORM trial, explains an emerging technique for cardiac screening: combining coronary CT angiography with artificial intelligence for plaque analysis to create an approach similar to mammography.

A total of 16 cardiology practices from 12 states settled with the DOJ to resolve allegations they overbilled Medicare for imaging agents used to diagnose cardiovascular disease.