RadNet expands partnership with GE HealthCare, acquires another tech company
In a busy week for RadNet, the imaging center operator said Wednesday it is expanding its partnership with GE HealthCare, one day after announcing plans to acquire another technology company.
Fresh off the firm’s Nov. 11 Investor Day, RadNet has inked a letter of intent with GE Healthcare, building on their collaboration originally announced one year ago. With the deal, the Chicago-based imaging manufacturer plans to integrate RadNet and its artificial intelligence subsidiary DeepHealth’s suite of breast AI solutions into mammography systems worldwide.
In addition, GE HealthCare will incorporate both RadNet’s remote scanning solution, TechLive, and its suite of thyroid AI offerings into GE’s ultrasound products, the two said Nov. 12.
“Our relationship with DeepHealth is a powerful example of how we are advancing our precision care through intelligent technology and a collaborative platform strategy,” Karley Yoder, MBA, GE HealthCare’s CEO of comprehensive care ultrasound, said in an announcement. “We look forward to incorporating DeepHealth Thyroid Suite and TechLive into our ultrasound portfolio and enhancing the capabilities of clinicians to make faster, more confident decisions while helping ensure patients benefit from the best our technology can offer.”
The two companies also plan to work together to bring new AI and remote connectivity tools into the ultrasound space. Their goal is to “enhance diagnostic confidence” while also “expanding access to expert care across diverse settings.” RadNet and GE’s original partnership, announced in November 2024, focused on combining DeepHealth’s breast cancer screening workflow with GE’s Senographe Pristina mammography system.
Ultrasound imaging is heavily dependent on the sonographer, requiring extensive manual measurements, repetitive worksheet creation and time-consuming reporting processes, the two companies noted. RadNet’s thyroid solutions aim to address this by automating nodule detection and characterization while standardizing reporting. The imaging group said it has seen a 30% reduction in exam times when using these AI enhancements. Plus, across over 4,000 generated reports, radiologists accepted the results without corrections in about 94% of cases.
Another tech company acquisition
Meanwhile, RadNet on Tuesday announced it is acquiring yet another technology firm with the purchase of Cimar UK.
Founded in 2010 and based in London, the company delivers cloud-based solutions for managing medical images. Cimar now provides an “extensive” radiology infrastructure, allowing for the deployment of AI and other solutions across different vendor platforms.
The technology is now in use across 50% of National Health Service trusts and 80% of U.K. private hospital groups, RadNet estimated.
“Radiologists and care teams are under immense pressure, often working with outdated or siloed tools, and are not set-up to keep pace with rising demand,” Kees Wesdorp, PhD, president and CEO of DeepHealth, said in a statement Nov. 11. “By acquiring Cimar, DeepHealth is taking a powerful step in redefining imaging-based care through a portfolio of solutions that connect clinical and operational intelligence to enable faster, more accurate diagnoses and improve efficiency.”
A previously established partnership between DeepHealth and Cimar currently underpins NHS England’s lung cancer screening program, the two noted. Cimar now provides the digital infrastructure connecting DeepHealth’s lung AI tool across over 90% of screening sites. It has demonstrated early success, RadNet reported, with 76% of lung cancers caught at earlier, more treatable stages compared to 29% historically.
The two together hope to create a “richer solution” for advancing care across the United Kingdom, according to the announcement. DeepHealth will seek to scale across both the U.K. and Europe, aiming to reach other screening and diagnostic programs, bringing the same model to more patients and hospital systems.
Based in Los Angeles, RadNet operates a network of 407 outpatient imaging centers across eight U.S. states. The company also discussed its quarterly results during an earnings call Monday, and on Nov. 5 announced the acquisition of remote MRI solutions provider Alpha RT.
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.