Radiology / Nuclear Medicine News

A study of 64,659 women, recently published in the journal Academic Radiology, found that while 1,246 of these women were at high enough breast cancer risk to recommend additional screening with MRI, only 173 of these women returned to the clinic within a year for the additional screening...

In an effort to reduce the inappropriate use of medical imaging and improve quality of care, a large, tertiary-care hospital has successfully implemented a computerized physician order entry (CPOE) system with clinical decision support for radiology, according to a study in the February issue of the Journal of the American College of Radiology...

A small study published online in the Journal of NeuroInterventional Surgery shows that a technique in which highly concentrated beams of radiation are used, known as Cyberknife, can relieve the stabbing pain of the facial nerve condition trigeminal neuralgia...

In 2011 - to the consternation of women everywhere - a systematic review of randomized clinical trials showed that routine mammography was of little value to younger women at average or low risk of breast cancer...

Routine use of positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) scans in head and neck cancer patient follow-up can detect local recurrences before they become clinically apparent and may improve the outcome of subsequent salvage therapy, according to a study presented at the Multidisciplinary Head and Neck Cancer Symposium, sponsored by AHNS, ASCO, ASTRO and SNM...

Lab scientists and international collaborators have created the shortest, purest X-ray laser pulses ever achieved, fulfilling a 45-year-old prediction and ultimately opening the door to new medicines, devices and materials...

Performing CT scans in the emergency department for patients experiencing dizziness may not be worth the expense - an important finding from Henry Ford Hospital researchers as hospitals across the country look for ways to cut costs without sacrificing patient care...

Brachytherapy for high-risk prostate cancers patients has historically been considered a less effective modality, but a new study from radiation oncologists at the Kimmel Cancer Center at Jefferson suggests otherwise...

Radiation therapy with or without chemotherapy is less effective for patients with HIV when compared to the recurrence and overall survival rates in patients who do not have HIV, according to a study presented at the Multidisciplinary Head and Neck Cancer Symposium, sponsored by AHNS, ASCO, ASTRO and SNM. Treating head and neck cancer in HIV-positive patients is a challenge for oncologists...

A select subgroup of advanced head and neck cancer patients treated with radiation therapy plus the chemotherapy drug cisplatin had more positive outcomes than patients treated with radiation therapy alone and continued to show positive results 10 years post-treatment, according to a study presented at the Multidisciplinary Head and Neck Cancer Symposium, sponsored by AHNS, ASCO, ASTRO and SNM...

Patients treated with IMRT for head and neck cancer report an increasingly better quality of life post-treatment when compared to patients receiving other forms of radiation therapy, according to a study presented at the Multidisciplinary Head and Neck Cancer Symposium, sponsored by AHNS, ASCO, ASTRO and SNM...

Using iodinated contrast media in imaging scans has been linked to alterations in thyroid function, which in turn raises the risk of developing hyperthyroidism, researchers from Brigham and Women's Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, reported in Archives of Internal Medicine...

Exposure to iodinated contrast media during imaging procedures is associated with changes in thyroid function, and increased risk of developing hyperthyroidism, according to a report in the Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. "Iodinated contrast media (ICM) are commonly administered pharmaceutical agents," the authors write as background information...

Treating brain tumors with whole brain radiation therapy can damage healthy brain tissue, but a new study in mice reveals that limiting the oxygen supply, or hypoxia, can alleviate some of the cognitive impairment caused by the radiation. The results are reported in the online journal PLoS ONE...

Since the discovery of the microscope, scientists have tried to visualize smaller and smaller structures to provide insights into the inner workings of human cells, bacteria and viruses...

An article in the January issue of the Journal of the American College of Radiology summarizes methods for radiation dose optimization in pediatric computed tomography (CT) scans. Approximately seven to eight million CT examinations are performed for various pediatric clinical indications per year in the United States...

Insurance status doesn't affect the quantity (or value) of imaging services received by patients in a hospital, in-patient setting, according to a study in the January issue of the Journal of the American College of Radiology. Approximately 51 million Americans, or 16.7 percent of the population, were without health insurance for some or all of 2009...

A critique, entitled "The Economist - and the Truth About Microwave Radiation Emitted from Wireless Technologies", of a report published in the The Economist (9/3/11), "Worrying about Wireless", has been published by experts in public health, neurosurgery, toxicology, oncology, electronic engineering, epidemiology, and cardiology from the USA, the UK, Sweden, Austria, Finland, ...

National Jewish Health researchers and their colleagues in the COPDGene research consortium report that a computerized form of radiology, known as quantitative CT, can offer valuable prognostic information for patients and doctors beyond the standard breathing tests most commonly used to evaluate chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)...

A Wayne State University researcher has shown that compounds found in soybeans can make radiation treatment of lung cancer tumors more effective while helping to preserve normal tissue. A team led by Gilda Hillman, Ph.D...