Multi-Modality Diagnosis Is New Trend That Integrates Imaging and Lab Testing
Today Dark Daily wants to introduce you to the emerging medical discipline of “multi-modality diagnosis.” Advances in genetics and molecular technologies are actively breaking down the traditional scope of practice for several medical specialists. At ground zero in this new area of medicine are pathology and radiology.
Multi-modality diagnosis can be defined in a simple manner. It is the use of several different types of clinical data-in an integrated fashion-to make a diagnosis. “Integration” is the key concept here, since physicians have always assembled information about the patient from several sources as they proceeded to evaluate the patient and make a diagnosis.
As doctors and researchers learn more about genetics and the role of DNA, RNA, and proteomics in various illnesses and ailments, there are huge increases in the volume of data now relevant in assessing the patient’s condition and determining the most accurate diagnosis. At the same time, medical specialties, particularly those of radiology and pathology, that formerly could work somewhat independently to evaluate the patient and provide the referring clinician with a report that was rather straightforward and simple, now face a new challenge. The expanding knowledge base of genetic and molecular information means that their evaluation of the patient needs to incorporate the findings of other medical specialists if the final assessment is to be accurate and useful to the referring clinician.
In other words, genetic medicine is the active catalyst that is already motivating different medical specialties to interact more closely to assess and diagnose certain types of diseases. At the forefront of this trend are progressive radiologists and pathologists-specifically those working with molecular imaging and molecular pathology. For example, in leading academic centers, it is growing ever more common for the neuropathologist and the neuroradiologist to review each other’s images before signing out their respective cases. In some laboratory settings, these two subspecialists are already developing a single, integrated report that goes to the referring physician.
Healthcare informatics is another channel of innovation propelling multi-modality diagnostics forward. Independent of pathology and radiology, there are informaticians pulling together disparate sets of patient data, then running this data through sophisticated software algorithms to develop diagnostic information that gives the patient’s physician new knowledge. Within the field of healthcare informatics, these innovators constantly describe their work as bringing together multiple modalities of data. Dark Daily readers should note that this effort is happening outside of the pathology and radiology specialties. It is an external trend to both professions.
Those interested in learning more about multi-modality diagnosis have two resources. In a recent issue of The Dark Report, a detailed intelligence briefing was published on this topic under the title “Multi-Modality Diagnosis Heading for Lab Medicine.” Dark Daily subscribers who would like a complementary copy of this intelligence briefing should contact Ron Martin at rbmatin@darkreport.com.
The second resource for learning more about multi-modality diagnosis is the upcoming Molecular Summit on the Integration of In Vivo and In Vitro Diagnostics http://www.molecular-summit.com On February 10-11, 2009, national and world leaders in molecular imaging, molecular diagnostics, and integrated informatics will be leading strategic sessions and case studies on this subject. Location is the Sheraton Society Hill Hotel in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Speakers from such organizations as Massachusetts General Hospital, Stanford University Medical Center, MD Anderson Medical Center, UCLA Medical Center, Siemens, and the Institute for Systems Biology will provide the latest innovations in the integration of in vivo and in vitro diagnostics. Last year’s Molecular Summit attracted 225 attendees, along with editors and reporters from 15 healthcare publications. This next Molecular Summit has compelling case studies of how molecular diagnostics, when integrated with molecular imaging and other data sets, is giving clinicians powerful new insights for making diagnoses, identifying appropriate therapies, and monitoring patient progress.
The full agenda and speaker line-up for this year’s Molecular Summit can be viewed here (or paste this URL into your browser: http://www.molecular-summit.com/agenda.htm )
Make your plans to join us at Molecular Summit 2009 to learn how your laboratory can benefit from multi-modality diagnostics.
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