According to an article in the January issue of the ACR Bulletin, the ACR recently donated a one-of-kind film of Marie Curie receiving the ACR Gold Medal in 1931 to the Curie Museum in Paris. Famous for the discovery of polonium and radium, Curie was recognized by the ACR for her significant contributions to the field of radiology.

GE Healthcare announced that it has filed a supplemental new drug application (sNDA) that will allow the company to manufacture Optison (Perflutren Protein-Type A Microspheres Injectable Suspension, USP), within its own facility. Optison is a contrast agent that may improve the visualization of the left ventricular border — an area of the heart that is critical to see in order to assess and diagnose certain heart diseases. Upon approval, GE Healthcare will provide supply of Optison to the U.S. market from its manufacturing facility in Oslo, becoming the only contrast media manufacturer to supply its own stock for the United States.

At the 98th annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) in November 2012, Siemens Healthcare demonstrated continued commitment to its Agenda 2013 global initiative by previewing several works-in-progress imaging systems.

PenRad’s mammography information system (MIS) has been named the Category Leader in the “2012 Best in KLAS Awards: Software and Services” report for MIS technology for the fifth consecutive year by KLAS. KLAS rankings are based on product quality, ease-of-use and price, as well as customer support according to evaluations given by system users. Since KLAS began analyzing the MIS market in 2008, PenRad MIS has won the Category Leader each year consecutively.

GSI Group Inc., a leading supplier of laser-based solutions, precision motion and optical technologies to global industrial, medical, electronics and scientific markets, announced that it has acquired NDS Surgical Imaging (NDS), a San Jose, Calif.-based global leader in surgical and radiology displays and related peripherals, for $82.5 million in cash, subject to customary closing adjustments.

Navidea Biopharmaceuticals, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company focused on precision diagnostic radiopharmaceuticals, announced the completion of a study of its novel radiopharmaceutical NAV4694 as a biomarker for visual detection and quantification of cerebral ?-amyloid in diagnosing Alzheimer’s disease (AD). The study was designed and conducted by Navidea’s partner, AstraZeneca, to assess the effects of various mass amounts of AZD4694 (NAV4694) on safety and the efficacy of positron emission tomography (PET) scanning in subjects with AD and in healthy volunteers (HVs). Evaluations were completed on the effects of two mass doses of the radioligand on binding parameters and overall image quality. These endpoints are typical and important requirements of drug registration dossiers filed with regulatory authorities for approval of diagnostic agents.

DR Systems, a leading independent provider of enterprise-wide medical imaging and information systems, announced that the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has issued to the company a new patent, relating to a system and method for viewing medical images at full resolution.