Advanced image fusion techniques such as PET/CT and SPECT/CT are on the rise. One important reason is their ability to increase precision in cancer diagnostics and treatment follow-up. However, these types of complex examinations can be time consuming to review.
I would say it solves 90% of my cases and for those cases, the solution has substantially increased my reading efficiency.
“The examinations are complex and extremely rich in information. In addition, the patients’ conditions are often difficult, with multiple tumors in different places in the body. An efficient IT-solution that lets me focus solely on the patient is key. I don’t want to put my energy and focus on logging on to different solutions and clicking around to find the tools I need,” says Isidro Albert Garcia, Consultant Oncologist Radiology.
At the beginning of 2016, long-time Sectra PACS customer Linköping University Hospital in Sweden, implemented Sectra’s NM Fusion application. The solution is completely integrated with Sectra PACS. Implementing the solution has increased reading efficiency of these complex cancer cases and improved the dialogue with the cancer care team.
“The key advantages of the Sectra NM Fusion application compared to what we have used previously is that it’s intuitive, easy to use and that it’s completely integrated with the rest of the workflow. The fact that the application is integrated not only removes manual steps and makes it easier and faster to start using, it also facilitates efficient comparison between current and previous exams,” says Ursula Kröll, Consultant Radiology.
Dr. Garcia agrees and adds: “You can tell the solution is designed with workflow efficiency in mind. It’s a fast and simple solution for what we do most often, rather than a specialized solution with ‘millions’ of features. I would say it solves 90% of my cases and for those cases, the solution has substantially increased my reading efficiency.”
Improved efficiency in the multidisciplinary team meetings
Being integrated in Sectra PACS enables the radiologists to launch the NM Fusion application from any workstation. For Dr. Garcia, this means that he is able to work from home and still have the advantage of using the NM Fusion application. It has also enabled Dr. Kröll and Dr. Garcia to improve the dialogue in their multidisciplinary team meetings.
“A disadvantage of the fused images is that they can easily give clinicians a picture of higher activity in the tumors than is actually the case. When those discussions and questions come up in our multidisciplinary team meetings, I can very easily adjust the display settings for the activity and perform new measurements there and then. This has greatly improved the dialogue with the cancer care team,” says Dr. Garcia.