September 2, 2014 — GE Healthcare announced that the Vizamyl flutemetamol (18F) solution for injection has received marketing authorization from the European Commission as a radiopharmaceutical medicinal product indicated for positron emission tomography (PET) imaging of beta amyloid neuritic plaque density in the brains of adult patients with cognitive impairment who are being evaluated for Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and other causes of cognitive impairment.

Philips has launched Affiniti. The new ultrasound system made its debut at the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Congress 2014 in Barcelona.

The evidence standard the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) used to approve Medicare coverage of a stool DNA colorectal cancer (CRC) screening test — under a new joint approval process with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) — should be applied to CT colonography (virtual colonoscopy) and other CRC screening exams according to the American College of Radiology (ACR). In a new letter to CMS, ACR urged coverage criteria be transparent and consistently applied.

Kit Lam and colleagues from UC Davis and other institutions have created dynamic nanoparticles (NPs) that could provide an arsenal of applications to diagnose and treat cancer. Built on an easy-to-make polymer, these particles can be used as contrast agents to light up tumors for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and positron emission tomography (PET) scans or deliver chemo and other therapies to destroy tumors. In addition, the particles are biocompatible and have shown no toxicity. The study was published online in Nature Communications.

August 29, 2014 — Nuance Communications announced it has achieved an industry-first milestone in sharing 3 billion medical images through the Nuance PowerShare Network. This reflects steady growth of approximately 30 percent each year as the technology gains more widespread adoption in hospitals and facilities securely sharing patient medical images using the cloud.

Spellman High Voltage introduced its new VMX Series high-performance, low-cost mammography X-ray generator. The VMX is designed from an integrated application perspective to optimize the clinical performance of today's full-field digital mammography diagnostic systems. The compact VMX meets the critical specifications at the price point that medical OEM's require for value-oriented systems.

August 27, 2014 — Telik Inc., a clinical stage oncology drug development company that merged with MabVax Therapeutics Inc. on July 8, announced it has received a $1.5 million contract for the Phase 2 portion of a small business innovation Research (SBIR) contract from the National Cancer Institute (NCI).

During tumor surgery, surgeons work to remove tumor tissue without damaging surrounding healthy tissue. This is particularly critical when removing brain gliomas, as damage to adjacent healthy brain tissue can have significant effects on a patient’s neural function. On the other hand, if cancerous tissue is not completely removed, the tumor may grow back. To address these issues, NIBIB-funded researchers have developed an imaging system that rapidly and accurately detects a molecular marker found in brain gliomas. It promises to improve the precision of these difficult surgeries by enabling the complete removal of the tumor, while reducing residual damage to brain tissue and neural function.