RSNA 2018 is a wrap, but the buzz continues, and we want to thank everyone that visited with iCAD during the show that had the opportunity to experience our ProFound AI solution for breast tomosynthesis and those we have met with since the show closed.
As you can imagine, lots has changed in the field of radiology over the past several decades, which made the meeting especially interesting and perhaps one of the best yet. Each year, thousands of radiologists, health imaging specialists and other healthcare practitioners gather for a week of networking, educational courses, exhibits and plenary sessions during the Radiological Society of North America’s (RSNA) Annual Meeting.
Hot topics at the show ranged from artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning to 3D printing and virtual reality. Attendees from around the globe had the opportunity to dive into the latest research and experience live how these new advancements in technology are impacting the industry.
At iCAD, AI is within our sweet spot. At RSNA this year, we had the pleasure of revealing ProFound AI™ solution for digital breast tomosynthesis. Since our return from RSNA 2018 we received FDA clearance and ProFound AI is now available in the US.
ProFound AI is a high-performance, deep-learning, cancer detection and workflow solution for DBT delivering critical benefits to radiologists, their facilities, and their patients through improvement of cancer detection rates by an average of 8 percent and decreasing unnecessary patient recall rates by an average of 7
percent. The new technology is trained to detect malignant soft-tissue densities and calcifications in 3D DBT
slices with unrivaled accuracy. It also provides radiologists with scoring information representing the likelihood that a detection or case is malignant based on the large dataset of clinical images used to train the algorithm.
Built on the latest deep-learning technology, the solution is clinically proven to assist radiologists in addressing the challenges of reading tomosynthesis cases by:
- Improving cancer detection rates
- Reducing false positives and unnecessary patient recalls
- Decreasing reading times
Also, at the show, Emily F. Conant, MD, discussed results from a recent study that compared the performance of 24 radiologists reading 260 DBT cases both with and without our ProFound AI solution. The findings showed that the concurrent use of our solution by radiologist study participants improved cancer detection rates with an average increase in sensitivity of 8.0 percent. The false positive rate decreased with
an average improvement in specificity of 6.9 percent, and the solution also delivered significant workflow benefits by reducing reading time by 52.7 percent on average. According to Emily, “To increase both sensitivity and specificity while also substantially reducing reading time is an impressive
outcome.”
During another exciting iCAD activation, Senthil Periaswamy, Ph.D., vice president of research at iCAD, spoke with a group of show attendees about how AI can improve diagnostic performance and reduce reading time in breast tomosynthesis. He also shared how iCAD utilized deep learning technology to train our ProFound AI algorithm, and touched on the value and benefits we recognized about the solution during our reader study and what iCAD’s vision is for AI moving forward. His presentation took place in the AI Theatre/Machine Learning Showcase, which was filled with energy and excitement throughout the week-long event.
Finally, iCAD had the opportunity to host an evening reception, AI After Dark, featuring four leading experts in breast imaging – Emily Conant, MD; Axel Grawingholt, MD; Rachel Brem, MD; and Jeff Hoffmeister, MD. The experts shared their vision for the future of AI in breast imaging and touched on their beliefs on how industry players should embrace, rather than be threatened by, innovative AI technology.
RSNA 2018 was a wonderful experience and opportunity and we are thrilled for next year’s event. Looking
forward, one thing is for sure – AI will continue to be a hot topic as it relates to healthcare and more specifically, breast imaging. As a leader in this space, we cannot be more thrilled.