iMammogram.com
First-time exhibitor iMammogram of Westlake Village, CA, is bringing its Web-based computer-aided diagnosis (CAD) mammography service, CloserLook, to this year's RSNA show.
CloserLook uses FDA-approved CAD technology, the ImageChecker M1000 mammography CAD workstation from R2 Technology of Los Altos, CA. The software performs approximately four billion calculations on each mammogram and produces an analysis of the mammogram marked with regions of interest for radiologist review.
iMammogram markets its service via its Web site (www.imammogram.com) to patients who have had mammograms in the past six months. The patient downloads and fills out a medical release form that is returned to iMammogram. The company contacts the mammography facility, obtains the films, performs the analysis, and sends the results back to the patient and the facility. The service is currently available only to U.S. residents.
iMammogram has also recently reported that it is partnering with mammography centers in the western U.S. on a per-use basis. Centers can utilize the CloserLook service without having to make the capital acquisition of the R2 technology.
Lorad
Lorad of Danbury, CT, has come under new corporate ownership since last year's RSNA meeting, following the acquisition of parent company Trex Medical by Hologic in September.
Lorad will demonstrate an upgrade path for moving from conventional Lorad M-IV mammography systems to digital mammography capability. New products from Lorad to be displayed include new upgrades to its flagship M-IV system, a breast biopsy table called Multi-care, and a mammography system, M-650, that is based on the M-IV.
Lorad's work-in-progress highlights will include a selenium-based mammography digital detector that uses Hologic's DirectRay technology. Lorad says the system will be superior in both modulation transfer function (MTF) and detective quantum efficiency (DQE) measurements compared to conventional and first-generation digital mammography systems. In addition, Lorad's Digital Breast Imager, featuring cesium iodide CCD technology, will be exhibited.
R2 Technology
R2 will introduce a new version of its ImageChecker CAD workstation that features software optimized for screening mammography applications. The company will also debut CheckMate, a display unit that will provide radiologists with CAD-analyzed mammography data in association with traditional film viewing stations.
The company is also beginning to apply its CAD technology to other areas of medical imaging, and will demonstrate CAD applications for chest CT and thoracic radiography.
Scanis
Scanis will demonstrate production models of Mammex TR, the company's mammography CAD workstation. Mammex TR is already shipping in Europe, and the company has begun working with the FDA in preparation for a regulatory filing. New features on Mammex TR will include an algorithm for detecting areas that could represent microcalcifications in the breast.
Sectra-Imtec
This Swedish PACS firm will showcase MicroDose Mammography, its entry into the digital mammography marketplace. The work-in-progress system utilizes about 95% of x-ray emissions, reducing radiation dose to 20% of the dosage requirements used in film-screen-based methods while preserving the same image quality, according to Sectra. Clinical testing of MDM is scheduled to begin in the second quarter of 2001.
Shimadzu Medical Systems
Shimadzu is entering the mammography market thanks to a relationship with Finnish mammography developer Planmed, and Shimadzu will display the Shimadzu Sophie Classic system in its booth.
By Brian Casey and Jonathan S. Batchelor
AuntMinnie.com staff writers
November 16, 2000
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