Hyperfine doling out thousands of free brain MRIs, RSNA21’s final tallies, plus more vendor news
Portable MRI maker Hyperfine has inked a partnership with the Brain Tumor Foundation to help provide thousands of free neuroimaging scans and improve early detection of this clinical concern.
High out-of-pocket costs for such exams, running anywhere from $400 to $3,500, coupled with uneven geographic distribution of magnetic resonance imaging suites can create barriers to care. The foundation hopes to address this using Hyperfine’s Swoop machine, running a “Road to Early Detection” campaign in concert with Weill Cornell Medicine in New York.
Other diseases such as lung and breast cancer have established screening approaches, but not so for brain abnormalities. The partners plan to provide some 10,000 free scans while conducting research to devise screening strategies for brain tumors, silent strokes, Alzheimer’s disease and multiple sclerosis.
“Our research collaboration with the Brain Tumor Foundation will enable thousands of people to obtain medical imaging, while providing researchers with data about the important role that early detection plays in addressing serious brain disease,” Scott White, chief commercial officer for Guilford, Connecticut-based Hyperfine, said Sept. 16.
Philips acquires image-guided therapy firm
Royal Philips has reached a deal to acquire Vesper Medical, a U.S. company specializing in minimally invasive peripheral vascular disease devices.
The Amsterdam-based imaging giant did not disclosed terms of the deal, which it hopes to close in 2022’s first quarter. Philips said the acquisition will expand its portfolio of diagnostic and therapeutic devices, allowing it to offer the full gamut of solutions for peripheral artery disease.
Company officials said they see strong synergies between Vesper Medical’s “innovative” stenting solution and Philips’ existing offerings.
“The acquisition of Vesper Medical is another step in our objective to innovate patient treatment with more sophisticated technology and expand our growth in the vascular therapy space,” Chris Landon, Philips’ senior VP and general manager of image-guided therapy devices, said Dec. 14.
RSNA shares final meeting tallies
The Radiological Society of North America totaled registrations of 29,273 for its annual meeting in Chicago, down about 43% compared to the last pre-pandemic iteration.
COVID-19 forced the Oak Brook, Illinois-based group to shelve its in-person meeting in 2020, marking the first such cancellation since World War 2. But the world’s largest medical imaging conference made its return earlier this month with mask and vaccination mandates to ensure safety.
All told, RSNA 2021 hosted 500 exhibitors, including 100 first-timers, organizers announced Thursday. The society will continue offering access to sessions online through April 30 and expects the show to return again on Nov. 27, 2022.
“After holding the RSNA annual meeting virtually in 2020, we were excited to get back to McCormick Place in 2021, and our attendees echoed that sentiment,” Executive Director Mark Watson said Dec. 16. “I am pleased that this year we were able to deliver a safe and productive live meeting experience, as well as a comprehensive virtual program.”
Rapid fire
A few more radiology vendor-related items of note, in rapid fashion:
- Fujifilm recently installed an MRI scanner inside of Paul Brown Stadium, home of the National Football League’s Cincinnati Bengals.
- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has OK’d Telix Pharmaceutical’s prostate cancer imaging product Illuccix, a kit for preparing radioactive diagnostic agents prior to PET scans.
- Artificial intelligence firm Brainomix has closed its Series B financing round, raising $21.2 million to help expand its AI portfolio into new imaging indications.
- Research giant Elsevier has partnered with Nuance Communications to integrate its diagnostic decision support tool for radiologists into the PowerScribe reporting platform.
- Ohio State researchers recently detailed their role in helping Siemens design new MRI technology.
- Carestream Health has completed a significant, companywide business transformation initiative which it said will help improve service delivery and support for its radiology customers.
- Rome Radiology Group recently became the first member of Strategic Radiology to take advantage of a new PACS partnership with vendor Intelerad.
- A study in the American Journal of Neuroradiology found that Subtle Medical’s deep learning image reconstruction tool can reduce MRI scan times by 60% while maintaining quality.
- The United Kingdom’s antitrust watchdog has reportedly launched an investigation into Microsoft’s proposed acquisition of Nuance Communications, the AP reported.
- Therapixel has received U.S. FDA clearance for expanded use of its MammoScreen breast imaging AI tool.
- And finally, in other Hyperfine news, the portable MRI maker recently expanded into the Canadian market.
Marty Stempniak has covered healthcare since 2012, with his byline appearing in the American Hospital Association's member magazine, Modern Healthcare and McKnight's. Prior to that, he wrote about village government and local business for his hometown newspaper in Oak Park, Illinois. He won a Peter Lisagor and Gold EXCEL awards in 2017 for his coverage of the opioid epidemic.