When physicians began utilizing advanced visualization, the software was limited to academic institutions and large hospitals. It was part of a dedicated workstation with dedicated hardware, making the technology a standalone application that was not typically utilized beyond the walls of the department where the workstation was located. Physicians would retrieve digital imaging and communications in medicine (DICOM) images from a modality and then work on the images at the workstation.

The variety of radiation therapy options continues to grow with the development of treatment planning software, imaging systems for guidance, linear accelerators and more. The external-beam radiation therapy (EBRT) market includes many different types of treatment, from traditional whole-body irradiation (WBI) to conformal radiation therapy (3-D CRT) and intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT). Despite a major decline in 2009, the U.S. radiation therapy market is bouncing back, according to a study published in July by IMV Medical Information Division.[1] Improvements in technologies are helping to drive activity as clinics and hospitals implement advanced techniques to more accurately target and treat cancers.

In the past 20 years there have been considerable improvements in the treatment of prostate cancer. As it is across all radiation oncology, techniques have evolved from conventional external beam radiation therapy (EBRT), to more targeted therapies that are delivered in fewer visits. One of the latest notable trends in radiotherapy is the emergence of real-time image guidance for intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT). For prostate cancer, radiotherapy is often deployed in conjunction with surgery (prostatectomy) or as curative therapy, depending on the stage of disease. As these new techniques emerge, it becomes more important for clinicians to identify which ones work most effectively and for which patients.

Experts have found that radiation dosage can have serious complications for patients with cancer. Cancer patients who receive chest radiation should be evaluated for heart disease before beginning radiation, and every five to 10 years afterward, according to the American Society of Echocardiography (ASE) and the European Assn. of Cardiovascular Imaging (EACVI) of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC). This expert consensus statement on the use of imaging to detect radiation-induced heart disease (RIHD) will be published in the September issue of the Journal of the American Society of Echocardiography (JASE). The writing group was co-chaired by Vuyisile Nkomo, M.D., an echocardiographer from the renowned Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn.

Based on data from a multi-site imaging trial involving more than 2,600 women, researchers say breast lesions categorized as ‘probably benign’ on supplemental screening ultrasound could be re-evaluated with imaging in 12 months, reducing patient anxiety, follow-up exams and unnecessary biopsies. Results of the study are published online in the journal Radiology.