30-08-2010 The MeVis Group successfully closes its international Breast Symposium

Bremen, 28th June 2010 – From 27th to 29th August 2010, MeVis Medical Solutions AG [ISIN: DE000A0LBFE4], a leading software company for medical imaging, offered a symposium on early detection and diagnosis of breast cancer using the latest multi-modal diagnostic techniques. The course primarily aimed at radiologists, gynaecologists, pathologists and surgeons and has been assigned 26 category C CME points by the Bremen Medical Council in accordance with German Medical Council guidelines. Barco and Hologic have been sponsoring the event in the Swissotel Bremen. A total of 64 medical specialists gathered together from 11 European countries in order to participate in the course of Prof. Tabár.

Clinical studies indicate that there is a far better chance of full recovery from breast cancer if it is diagnosed and treated early. The size of the tumour is a decisive factor for the success of therapies employed, yet it remains difficult to diagnose small, malignant changes to breast tissue at an early stage because mammary carcinomas rarely cause noticeable symptoms at this point. Indeed, there are often no accompanying symptomatic features even at much later stages and once mammary carcinomas have reached a palpable size, the chances of success start to decline. Besides clinical examination and biopsy tests, several imaging techniques are used in the diagnostic process.

On a day-to-day basis, doctors have to make their decisions based on the information available; these decisions can be crucial for the success of any therapy subsequently employed and, especially in ambiguous cases such as those involving dense breast tissue or tissue layers, even a minimal amount of extra information – either in text or image form or both – can make a great difference. Increasingly, digital processes and media are being used to evaluate the ever-growing range of medical images more precisely.

In recent years, several important technological innovations have appeared to assist in the image-based diagnosis of breast cancers; among these new techniques, the latest imaging modalities such as automatic full-field breast ultrasound and digital tomosynthesis of the breast were developed especially to aid diagnosis of mammary carcinoma. These innovations need to be integrated reliably and in the long term with conventional imaging modalities such as mammograms, magnetic resonance imaging and two-dimensional ultrasound.

This new form of multi-modal diagnostics has two main functions. Firstly, changes in breast tissue present in one or more of the images must be detected, for example over a course of examinations using digital mammography. Following this, a correct diagnosis must be assigned to the change noted, with new multi-modal techniques being used alongside a multitude of tools. There are already well-developed technical processes for recognising lesions (e.g. digital magnification, contrast adjustments, partial inversion of image data), but optimum use of the technology available is still largely dependent on the individual experience of the doctor concerned. This symposium therefore aims to concentrate entirely on the people making the diagnoses. After all, the doctors are the most important link in the chain of decisions leading from the pre-diagnosis stage through treatment.

In order to support doctors in their daily work as best possible, MeVis offers not only its range of widely-recognised, high-end software applications, but also hosts regular workshops and lectures in close cooperation with leading equipment manufacturers. The MeVis Breast Symposium aims to help doctors make fast, decisive and accurate image-based diagnoses and then act accordingly as a part of an efficient medical care system. Furthermore, the combination of theory and practice over a range of topics aims to create an awareness of therapy options that are efficient and less damaging to patients.

Further information on the symposium is available at the following web address: http://www.mevis.de/mms/en/Symposium_2010.html

MeVis Medical Solutions AG was founded in 1997 and is one of the world’s leading independent manufacturers and vendors of medical imaging software with focus on dedicated, disease-oriented clinical applications. Over the past few years, there has been an enormous increase in the complexity and volume of medical imaging data derived from digital imaging processes such as computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and ultrasound (US). MeVis Group’s products analyze and process this data in such a way as to provide medical professionals with crucial information for early detection, diagnosis and intervention in the areas of cancer and lung diseases as well as neurological conditions. The Group develops its software solutions in close consultation with the world’s leading medical experts and original equipment makers in the medical technology sector and primarily markets this software via these partnerships.