SAN ANTONIO, June 19, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Additional
research appearing in the June online issue (open access)
of European Radiology features the groundbreaking
diagnostic breast cancer imaging technology introduced by Seno
Medical Instruments™, Inc. (Seno Medical). This
technology might not only help physicians better differentiate
between benign and malignant breast lesions, but also discriminate
between breast cancer molecular subtypes.
The retrospective European post-marketing surveillance analysis
corroborates previous studies, which concluded that opto-acoustic
ultrasound (OA/US) technology might increase specificity and the
ability to rule out disease, potentially reducing the number of
false positive examinations and biopsies of benign masses.
Researchers observed results from five centers in the Netherlands, where the technology has been
introduced commercially using Seno Medical's Imagio®
Breast Imaging System. In this study, 67 biopsy-proven malignant
masses were reviewed to compare OA/US characteristics and
histopathological prognostic indicators.
OA/US technology creates a "blood map" that gives functional and
anatomical information in and around the mass using hemoglobin as a
natural contrast agent. The study results showed that OA/US can
also help identify different subtypes of cancer by measuring the
emergence of angiogenesis (newly created blood vessels which
indicate the presence of malignant activity within and around the
mass). Other key factors (e.g. histologic grade, continuous number
of mitosis, HER2 and hormone receptor status, and Ki-67
poliferation index) might also be identified with the aid of this
technology.
According to the study results, the combination of functional
and morphologic information provided by OA/US showed promise in
differentiating Luminal A, Luminal B, HER2-enriched, and Triple
Negative cancers. These tumors have a different prognosis and
require different treatment paths that physicians and patients must
consider. Molecular analysis requires specialized equipment and
expertise, making this process lengthy and expensive. Breast tumors
are heterogeneous and biopsy may be insufficient to assess the
complete tumor heterogeneity. Therefore, OA/US features that
suggest an aggressive tumor subtype that is potentially conflicting
with histopathologic biomarkers might suggest the need for more
extensive review and inspection of the pathologic specimen.
"Successful breast cancer treatment relies on detecting the
cancer and its subtype as quickly as possible," said Gisela Menezes, MD, PhD, Medical Director at
Seno Medical and the article's lead author. "This promising data
using a non-invasive diagnostic approach with OA/US molecular
bioimaging could potentially give patients a better chance of
getting more accurate and timely prognosis and treatment."
"Although this is a new emerging technology, these encouraging
results show that Seno Medical's OA/US technology could impact the
course of cancer diagnosis for millions of women," said
Ruud Pijnappel, MD, PhD, Professor
at University Medical Center, Utrecht,
Netherlands and one of the study's authors. "This technology
could give physicians the information needed to make a more
confident diagnosis in less time, improve their patient's
experience, and potentially reduce biopsies of benign masses."
Seno Medical Instruments™, Inc. is a
San Antonio, Texas-based medical
imaging company committed to the development and commercialization
of a new modality in cancer diagnosis: opto-acoustic imaging a
molecular partner to ultrasound. Seno Medical's
Imagio® Breast Imaging System fuses
opto-acoustic technology with ultrasound (OA/US) to generate
real-time functional and anatomical images of the breast. Through
the appearance or absence of two hallmark indicators of cancer –
angiogenesis and deoxygenation – the opto-acoustic images provide a
unique blood map in and around breast masses while the interleved
and coregistered ultrasound provides a traditional anatomic
image.
Contact:
Bryan Fisher,
202.868.4825, bfisher@messagepartnerspr.com
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SOURCE Seno Medical