January 25, 2012 — To provide patient-friendly magnetic resonance (MR) imaging, Banner Good Samaritan Medical Center in Phoenix, Ariz., has installed a Vantage Titan 1.5T MR system from Toshiba America Medical Systems, Inc. the 1,200th Vantage MR installed worldwide. Banner Good Samaritan is using Toshiba’s Vantage Titan MR primarily for imaging breast cancer patients from the Laura Dreier Breast Center during screening and surgical planning.
The Vantage Titan offers a 71 cm open bore and allows feet-first imaging for most exams to help reduce claustrophobia. Toshiba’s Pianissimo noise-reduction technology reduces exam noise levels by up to 30 decibels, addressing one of the major compliance issues in MR.
Banner Good Samaritan is also utilizing two of Toshiba’s proprietary non-contrast MRA techniques, fresh blood imaging (FBI) and time space angiography (TSA), to image patients near or at renal failure without the use of potentially dangerous contrast agents. Additionally, the system is used to help guide physicians in the planning of liver transplants, general musculoskeletal imaging and many other clinical applications.
Toshiba has a long-standing partnership with the Banner Health network, which includes two other Vantage Titan MR systems located at Banner Ironwood Medical Center in San Tan Valley, Ariz., and Skyline Center for Health in Loveland, Colo. Other Toshiba medical imaging systems in the network include four Aquilion CT systems and four Infinix-i vascular X-ray systems.
“Partnering with Banner Good Samaritan demonstrates the versatility of the Vantage Titan in helping diagnose a variety of conditions while making the exam experience more comfortable and safer for patients,” said Stuart Clarkson, director, MR business unit, Toshiba. “We also plan to work together with Banner Good Samaritan in the future to explore and develop advanced non-contrast breast imaging techniques.”
For more information: www.medical.toshiba.com