A new study has shown that magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) used to evaluate responses to pre-surgery (neo-adjuvant) chemotherapy or radiation may predict survival among patients with advanced rectal cancer.

New technology appears to provide faster, more accurate heart scans for both viewing blood vessels in the heart and measuring blood supply to the heart muscle, while exposing patients to less radiation, researchers report in Circulation: Cardiovascular Imaging, a journal of the American Heart Association.

For the first time, researchers at Seattle Cancer Care Alliance have demonstrated the feasibility of using serial positron emission tomography (PET) scans, using a special estrogen-containing isotope, to confirm the relative effectiveness of estrogen-blocking and estrogen-depleting therapy in patients with metastatic breast cancer.

A team of researchers from four Boston-area institutions led by Nicusor Iftimia from Physical Sciences, Inc. has demonstrated for the first time that optical coherence tomography (OCT), a high resolution optical imaging technique that works by bouncing near-infrared laser light off biological tissue, can reliably distinguish between pancreatic cysts that are low-risk and high-risk for becoming malignant.

Addressing the need to improve diagnostic accuracy while making exams safer and more comfortable for patients, Toshiba America Medical Systems, Inc., is showcasing patient-focused technology, including its Aquilion^TM ONE and Aquilion^TM Premium CT systems, M-Power MR system user interface (work in progress), Aplio^TM MX ultrasound system and Kalare^TM Wireless, at the Association for American Medical Systems Management (AHRA) annual meeting in Grapevine, Texas, August 14–17 (AHRA Booth #116).