October 17, 2011– GE Healthcare announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) gave 510(k) clearance of an innovative technology to aid the physician in breast cancer diagnosis. GE estimates that by 2020, more than 1 million women worldwide will be examined using SenoBright, and this technology can help lead to more productive diagnosis paths for nearly 250,000 women.

October 17, 2011 — New this year at RSNA 2011, Hologic will showcase its Fluoroscan InSight-FD Mini C-arm. The system includes a number of new features including an innovative flat panel detector that rivals standard X-ray images, greater range of motion in a more ergonomic design for ease of positioning and greater surgical access, and new image processing algorithms.

October 14, 2011 — Merge Healthcare announced the release of the “Meaningful Use Guide for Radiology” resource written specifically for radiologists.

Should cancer be detected in its early stages, many women are candidates for Hologic's targeted radiation therapy, a patient-friendly and effective alternative for women that qualify. At RSNA 2011, Hologic will feature its next generation MammoSite multi-lumen (ML) brachytherapy applicator.

At RSNA 2011, MedCurrent will showcase the newest version of OrderRight, the leading medical imaging appropriateness decision support solution. Used by physicians at point of care, this easy-to-use software streamlines care delivery and saves money by automating many of the current manual processes performed by radiology benefit management (RBM) companies. Instead of RBM staff reviewing orders, the CDS system electronically reviews orders and makes comparisons to the system’s rule sets based on the appropriateness criteria from the American College of Radiology (ACR). Feedback is immediately provided to the physician to facilitate ordering of the most medically appropriate procedure.

Until recently, consistent assessment of breast composition was hampered by widely differing technical factors and the subjectiveness of the reviewer. The Hologic Quantra volumetric assessment tool is a breakthrough technology that estimates volumes in the breast and calculates the volumetric fraction of fibroglandular tissue. The Quantra tool uses details of the X-ray imaging chain to quantify fibroglandular tissue in the breast. Quantra software aggregates volumetric measurements from each view in a study into a simple, concise assessment for each breast.

October 10, 2011 ­­— Varian Medical Systems is introducing a new PremierAssurance program that offers cancer treatment centers flexible access to a broad spectrum of services from Varian's customer support organization.