ColonCAD™

Overview

Medicsight ColonCAD™ is an image analysis software tool designed to be used with CT colonography (virtual colonoscopy) to assist radiologists in searching for and measuring potential colorectal polyps. Medicsight’s ColonCAD™ solution is available as an application programming interface (API). This design allows Medicsight’s visualisation partner companies to seamlessly integrate the CAD capability into their existing product offerings. Medicsight’s multiple integration partner approach means that many radiologists are able to access the valuable additional information supplied by CAD on a workstation with which they are familiar. The Medicsight ColonCAD™ software is integrated into the leading 3D advanced visualization imaging workstations of the following partner distribution networks:

Vital Images Inc. of Minnetonka, MN.

TeraRecon Inc. of San Mateo, CA.

Viatronix Inc. of Stony Brook, NY.

3mensio Medical Imaging BV of Bilthoven, Netherlands.

Responding to the challenge of CT colonography

The challenge for radiologists is three-fold:

Managing the evaluation of the large amount of data produced from multislice CT scans of the colon is both time consuming and exhausting and can lead to perceptual errors.

Locating polyps hidden behind haustral folds and/or distinguishing polyps from surrounding tissue.

Minimising intra- and inter-reader variability arising from differing levels of reader experience and training.

 

Medicsight ColonCAD™ - allowing CT colonography to live up to its promise.

Medicsight’s ColonCAD™ (Computer Aided Detection) software solution, addresses many of the difficulties being experienced by radiologists and has been designed to help unlock the full potential of CTC. Medicsight ColonCAD™ is set to transform virtual colonoscopy by helping improve productivity in the detection of abnormalities within the colon. Medicsight ColonCAD™ is an image analysis software tool designed to be used with scanned images from CT colonography (virtual colonoscopy) and assists radiologists in detecting and measuring potential colorectal polyps.

ColonCAD™ uses a series of filters deployed against image data from CT colonography studies. The filters highlight spherical regions as small as 5mm (about the size of a small pea) allowing radiologists to examine these areas in 3D in order to judge their potential as true polyps. Radiologists are also able to manually highlight any irregularities for closer inspection. Once suspect polyps are found, the software can determine the shape and features, precisely identifying the boundaries and showing the lesion in 3D, with automatic diameter and volume measurements. This allows radiologists to accurately review and monitor polyps over time.

ColonCAD™ has been specifically designed to support the detection and segmentation of abnormalities within the colon that may potentially be adenomatous polyps. The product looks to improve workflow by providing the clinician with many advanced tools for examining CT colonography studies and aiding in the early detection of disease. Medicsight ColonCAD™:

Incorporates a validated CAD algorithm.

Automatically highlights specific regions of interest (ROI).

Allows accurate measurement of ROIs.

 

Validated against one of the world’s largest CTC databases

Unlike some commercially available CAD systems, that have only been validated on a small number of patients, Medicsight’s ColonCAD™ has been validated against one of the largest and most population diverse databases of verified CT scan data in the world. This solid foundation of data not only helps you accurately detect and analyse potential abnormalities within the colon, it gives you the reassurance and confidence to make a more reliable, accurate diagnosis.
 

Colon cancer - a major public health problem

At the age of 50 each person has about a five per cent lifetime risk of being diagnosed with colorectal cancer. On average, one third of all patients who develop colorectal cancer die as a consequence but, because of the nature of the disease, many people are reluctant to seek help, even when they become symptomatic. As a result, it has become one of the leading causes of cancer death both in Europe and the USA. At present, colorectal cancer accounts for 500,000 deaths worldwide, each year.
 

Early diagnosisis the best hope for cure

More than 80 per cent of colorectal cancers begin with the development of benign adenomateous polyps, finger-like projections that grow into the intestinal cavity. These polyps are found in around 50% of Americans over the age of 50. There is now widespread acknowledgment that adenomateous polyps have the potential to become malignant, invade the normal colon and metastasise. Early polyp detection and removal has been shown to reduce both the incidence and mortality from colorectal cancer by up to 50 per cent, particularly if removed early in their course.


See screenshots of partner integrations:
   

Medicsight ColonCAD™ in Vital Images' Vitrea® workstation.

Medicsight ColonCAD™ in Viatronix V3D™ workstation.

Medicsight ColonCAD™ in TeraRecon Aquarius workstation.

 

Intended use statement

ColonCAD API 3.1 is a non-invasive software application for image analysis designed to assist radiologists and other clinicians in searching for and segmenting non-elongated raised objects with spherical elements within the colon using CT image data. These objects may be potential lesions e.g. colorectal neoplasia (polyps). It is delivered as an application programming interface (API) which can be integrated into other medical imaging solutions. ColonCAD API 3.1 provides tools that allow the user to fully adjust a variety of characteristics used in highlighting objects. The identified objects are returned to the host medical imaging application, allowing the user to view the images with or without the highlighted view.

Additional imaging tools are also provided that perform segmenting of user selected objects so that object characteristics may be reported back to the user. Characteristic information on the segmented region includes the long axis of the three dimensional region (“diameter”), and cubic volume (mm3). When used by a skilled physician, this software provides information that may be useful in interpreting studies for both symptomatic and asymptomatic patients. Patient management decisions should not be made solely on the results of ColonCAD analysis. It is essential that the radiologist examines all images in the CT examination, not only the images with identified objects.

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