Diffusion abnormality index has emerged as a potential biomarker to measure brain tumor response to radiation therapy (RT), according to research presented at the 2013 Cancer Imaging and Radiation Therapy Symposium Feb. 9 in Orlando, Fla. The symposium is sponsored by the American Society for Radiation Oncology and the Radiological Society of North America.

In-room PET scanning during proton therapy is feasible for monitoring treatment ranges and helps overcome logistical issues inherent with transporting a patient to a PET scanner outside the treatment room, according to a small clinical trial published online Feb. 5 in the International Journal of Radiation Oncology*Biology*Physics.

SUVmax (maximum standardized uptake value) may provide a marker to indicate progression-free survival in Stage 1 nonsmall cell lung cancer patients treated with radiation therapy, according to research presented Feb. 9 at the 2013 Cancer Imaging and Radiation Therapy Symposium in Orlando, Fla.

The number of people with Alzheimer’s disease is expected to swell to nearly 14 million in the next 40 years, according to a study published online Feb. 6 in Neurology.

When Methodist Health System, a community hospital in Omaha, first launched lung cancer screening in November 2000, the Midwest provider was finding significantly more nodules in its patients than other screening sites reported. “Academic centers on the coast had a nodule detection rate of 15 to 20 percent; ours was 70 percent,” recalled Richard Kutilek, MD. The difference, however, reflected disparate patient populations not clinical expertise.

While myocardial perfusion imaging using cadmium-zinc-telluride (CZT) SPECT cameras accurately measures left ventricular ejection fraction, the method underestimates left ventricular volumes, according to a study published online Feb. 5 in the Journal of Nuclear Medicine.

Oregon Institute of Technology in Klamath Falls, Ore., has installed 16 Aplio 300 ultrasound systems from Toshiba America Medical Systems.

Mammograms every two years offer the same benefit as annual screening for women aged 65 and older, regardless of comorbidity, and also significantly reduce the number of false positive results, according to a study published online Feb. 5 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.