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Leading the News
Medicare Proposes Expansion of Coverage for PET
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) have issued a draft decision that would expand coverage for initial diagnostic testing with positron emission tomography (PET) in Medicare beneficiaries being treated for cancer. The proposed national coverage determination is based on research conducted under the Coverage with Evidence Development program. Through this program, CMS used information from the National Oncologic PET Registry that connected Medicare coverage of PET scans to the collection of clinical information regarding the effect of PET scans on the patient's cancer care.
From "Medicare Proposes Expansion of PET Scans as Cancer Diagnostic Tool"
Medical News Today (01/07/09)
Research
PET Scan May Detect Brain Aging Before Symptoms Appear
UCLA researchers, led by Dr. Gary Small, have found that brain aging can be diagnosed long before symptoms appear using positron emission tomography (PET) and patient-specific information such as Alzheimer's risk. Small and his colleagues conducted PET scans of 76 volunteers without dementia using a novel chemical marker known as FDDNP, which binds to plaque and tangle deposits in the brain. The results of their study, published in the Archives of General Psychiatry, showed larger concentrations of FDDNP in the medial and lateral temporal regions of the brain in older patients, in patients with a genetic predisposition to Alzheimer's, and in patients with mild cognitive impairment.
From "Scientists May See Brain Aging Before Symptoms Appear"
eMaxHealth.com (01/12/09)
Dose Determines Mortality and Cancer Risks for Radiation Workers
A study of 175,000 radiation workers in the United Kingdom conducted by the British Health Protection Agency has found that the risk of developing cancer increases depending on the radiation dose to which the individual is exposed. These findings, published in the British Journal of Cancer, are consistent with cancer risk estimates used in current international radiation protection standards, both for leukemia and other cancer types. However, researchers also found that the overall mortality in U.K. radiation workers is lower than that of the general population.
From "Mortality and Cancer Risks for Radiation Workers"
Legal & Medical Magazine (01/08/2009)
Technology
MR Arthrography More Accurate Than MR in Diagnosing Shoulder Tears
MR arthrography is more accurate than 3T MRI when used to identify shoulder tears, according to a study led by Neuroskeletal Imaging Dr. Thomas Magee. For the purposes of the study, published in the American Journal of Roentgenology, Magee and his colleagues used 3T MRI and MR arthrography examinations to assess tears in 150 patients. They found that that sensitivity for MR arthrography for assessing labral, posterior labral, SLAP, supraspinatus tendon, and partial-thickness articular surface tears was 98 percent, 95 percent, 98 percent, 100 percent, and 97 percent respectively compared to traditional MRI, which displayed sensitivities of 83 percent, 84 percent, 83 percent, 92 percent, and 68 percent respectively.
From "MR Arthrography Is More Accurate Than MR in Diagnosing Shoulder Tears, Study Suggests"
Science Daily (01/06/09)
Researchers Develop Microscopic Particle for Molecular Imaging and Tumor Targeting
Researchers at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and Cornell University have engineered a new type of microscopic particle for use in molecular imaging known as C dots. The researchers, led by Dr. Michelle Bradbury, have found C dots are able to target surface receptors or other molecules expressed in both external and internal structures. By doing so, researchers were able to image various tumor properties including blood vessel location, cell death, treatment response, and invasive or metastatic spread to lymph nodes and distant organs. Full results of their work can be found in the Jan. 2009 issue of Nano Letters.
From "Smaller, Brighter Probe Tailored for Molecular Imaging and Tumor Targeting Created"
ScienceDaily (01/10/09)
Medical-Legal Issues
CMS Will Not Update Brain Imaging PQRI Measures for 2009
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) have opted not to update Physician and Quality Reporting Initiative (PQRI) standards for stroke imaging in 2009. The current PQRI imaging standards have been in place since 2007 and some experts predicted CMS would update them this year to reflect an expansion of the measure denominator to include patients that had not been diagnosed with ischemic stroke or transient ischemic attack.
From "CMS Fails to Update Brain Imaging PQRI Measures for 2009"
Smart Brief (01/09/2009)
Texas State Legislature Considers Accreditation Requirements and Self-Referral Restrictions
Texas radiologists have asked the state legislature to order a study designed to determine whether allowing physicians to order diagnostic tests using scanning machines they own leads to excessive use of advanced imaging technologies, including CT, MRI, and PET scans. Additionally, the legislature is expected to consider a bill that would require scans to be read by an accredited radiologist. There is currently a federal law that prohibits self-referral; however, experts say it is rarely enforced because it contains too many loopholes. For this reason, 23 states have already gone forward with self-referral bans. Texas legislators have already rejected such a ban in the last three sessions, and supporters are hopeful the prospective study could change their minds.
From "Radiologists See Overuse of Patient Scans; Specialists See Turf Battle"
Austin American-Statesman (TX) (01/08/09) Roser, Mary Ann
Clinical Practice
Longer Radiation Delay Improves Glioblastoma Survival
Research led by Dr. Deborah T. Blumenthal of the Tel Aviv Medical Center found that patients with glioblastoma who wait between four to six weeks after surgery to initiate radiation treatment tend to survive longer, on average, than those who start treatment less than two weeks after surgery. Blumenthal's study, published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, reviewed the medical records of 2,855 glioblastoma patients. They found that patients who underwent radiotherapy within two weeks of surgery had a median survival rate of 9.2 months compared to patients who waited between four and six weeks, who survived an average of 12.5 months.
From "Longer Radiation Delay Improves Glioblastoma Survival"
Modern Medicine (12/31/08)
Five-year PSA Value Predicts 10-year Prostate Cancer Recurrence After Brachytherapy Treatments
Mount Sinai Hospital researchers recently found that 97 percent of patients treated with brachytherapy alone, brachytherapy and hormonal therapy, or combined implantation and external beam radiotherapy who were free of biochemical failure five years after treatment remained cancer-free 10 years after their initial treatment. These findings, published in the Journal of Radiation Oncology, Biology, and Physiology, are based on 742 patients treated for prostate cancer at Mount Sinai between 1991 and 2002. Based on this outcome, researchers concluded that treatment regimen had no effect on biochemical failure. None of the patients in the study developed metastatic disease or died of prostate cancer.
From "Prognostic Significance of Five-Year PSA Value for Predicting Prostate Cancer Recurrence After Brachytherapy Alone and Combined With Hormonal Therapy"
UroToday (01/07/2009)
Industry News
ASTRO Changes Name to American Society for Radiation Oncology
The American Society of Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology (ASTRO) has changed its name to the American Society for Radiation Oncology. However, the society will still be identifiable by the ASTRO acronym by allowing the "T" to represent the tagline included in its new logo "targeting cancer care." According to society representatives, the name change was designed to replace the outdated term "therapeutic radiology" with "radiation oncology," which leadership considered more relevant.
From "ASTRO Changes Name to American Society for Radiation Oncology"
Medical News Today (01/07/09)
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