Colon cancer screening programmes using the Viatronix V3D virtual colonoscopy platform

3 December 2009

Viatronix has announced that several successful screening programs using the company's virtual colonoscopy technology were highlighted at the recent 10th International Symposium on Virtual Colonoscopy.

The company's virtual colonoscopy system takes a series of  2D computed tomography (CT) images of the colon and using specialised software converts these into into a 3D model of the colon that the doctor can use to screen for polyps and other abnormalities.

The system gives high resolution and unrestricted viewing of all angles of the colon surfaces. It is also less invasive, faster, more comfortable for the patient, and as no sedation is required allows the patient immediate resumption of activity.

A V3D reconstructed image of a colon
A V3D reconstructed image of a colon

Programs that used the Viatronix V3D-Colon platform for their routine screening include: The Colon Health Initiative CHI) from Department of Defense, the University of Wisconsin in Madison, WI, and the Washington Radiology Associates in Washington D.C.

The CHI program includes the National Naval Medical Center at Bethesda, MD and Walter Reed Army Medical Center at Washington, DC. The CHI institutions represent a successful screening program led by government facilities for more then five years. Several thousand patients have been screened utilizing the V3D-Colon platform at these facilities.

The University of Wisconsin CTC screening program now includes two hospitals and three clinics. This is the first community-based screening program that is reimbursed by several local insurance carriers. At the University of Wisconsin more than 6,000 patients have been screened thus far and they continue to screen more.

The Washington Radiology Associates screening program in Washington, DC is operated entirely by a private imaging group for more then six years.

In Canada, The Joint Department of Medical Imaging (5 teaching hospitals affiliated with the University of Toronto) has provided CTC screening for the Greater Toronto Area since 2001. Their program is currently centered at the Mount Sinai Hospital in downtown Toronto.

All of these programs have been successfully screening thousands of patients over several years utilizing the Viatronix V3D-Colon platform. Another important step towards bringing VC/CTC screening in the mainstream was recent announcement by the American Medical Association (AMA) - the approval of 3 new Category I - CPT codes for CTC with an effective date of January 2010.

 

To top