A pair of articles in the January issue of Radiology debated whether or not radiology departments need to develop an informed consent process that details the risk of medical radiation. Both groups of experts recognized that informed consent may not be ready for prime time, albeit for different reasons, and acknowledged the value of informed decision making.

Consensus double reading of baseline results of lung cancer screening provided no statistically significant benefit over a single reader when using a nodule management strategy based solely on semi-automated volumetry, according to a study published in the January issue of Radiology.

The FDA has granted clearances for GE Healthcare's Brivo NM615, a single-head nuclear medicine gamma camera with SPECT capability.

World Molecular Imaging Society (WMIS) has lauched its first online portal, which features the annual meeting's presentation videos, abstracts, workshops and plenary sessions.

The FDA shared in a December 2011 draft guidance its current thinking on how manufacturers and distributors of prescription drugs and medical devices should respond to unsolicited requests for information about unapproved, off-label uses related to their FDA-approved products.

Two studies published in the January issue of the International Journal of Radiation OncologyBiologyPhysics demonstrated the effectiveness of proton therapy in treating prostate cancer. One study revealed the therapys effectiveness while limiting side effects; the other showed that external beam therapy can achieve results comparable to brachytherapy.

In the wake of the passage of the Deficit Reduction Act (DRA), there were concerns that advanced imaging procedures would shift from private offices to hospital outpatient departments and that access would be restricted. According to a study in the January issue of the Journal of the American College of Radiology, while there hasnt been a large shift away from offices toward hospitals, the DRA did affect imaging volume and seems to have resulted in some loss of access to nuclear medicine.

Nuance Communications has called for medical speech recognition platform developers to give mobile clinicians a voice in its 2012 Mobile Clinician Voice Challenge.