In particular, Gold Standard Phantoms welcomes the increased investment in MRI scanners, a crucial move to reduce waiting times for the NHS across the country.
However, for this investment to have a maximum impact, it should be accompanied by a concomitant increase in the number of highly trained medical physicists and engineers to ensure optimal quality across the board.
as also highlighted by the Institute of Physics and Engineering in Medicine (https://www.ipem.ac.uk/).
At Gold Standard Phantoms, we understand the critical importance of Quality Assurance (QA) in ensuring optimal performance and patient safety.
Our state-of-the-art phantoms provide NHS medical physicists with the tools they need to perform rigorous QA, ensuring that the new scanners and radiotherapy machines deliver accurate and reliable results.
The £20bn funding for research and development in medical science aligns perfectly with our mission at Gold Standard Phantoms.
As imaging technology evolves, so do our phantoms. We are committed to continuously developing cutting-edge QA solutions that keep pace with the latest advancements in medical imaging and radiotherapy.
Gold Standard Phantoms supports this effort by providing user-friendly, efficient QA tools that help medical physicists work more effectively. Our phantoms and SaaS are designed to streamline QA processes, ensuring optimal use of MRI scan time while reducing downtime, thus ensuring that the new equipment delivers on its promise of improved patient care and reduced waiting times.
We echo IPEM's call for continued investment in the medical physics workforce and stand ready to support the NHS with our advanced QA solutions.
Together, we can ensure that the UK remains at the forefront of medical imaging,
delivering the best possible care to patients across the nation.
When an early beta test site commissioned a new MRI scanner with a 32-channel head coil, they expected nothing but the best in diagnostic capabilities.
On July 18 2024, Gold Standard Phantoms arrived at the site to demonstrate VERIFLUX. This innovative solution promised to enhance MRI quality assurance processes.
The results showed a poor Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR) and Signal Fluctuation-to-Noise Ratio (SFNR),
both significantly lower than what would be expected from a high-quality MRI system.
Additionally, the Radius of Decorrelation (RDC) was alarmingly low.
In stark contrast, the standard fMRI test performed on a volunteer that same afternoon showed no apparent issues.
The discrepancy was puzzling, but it highlighted a crucial point: sometimes, what we don't see can be just as important as what we do.
As Carl Sagan famously said:
"Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence."
This situation perfectly exemplified the wisdom of those words. Intrigued by VERIFLUX's findings, the hospital staff decided to dig deeper.
They called in an engineer to conduct a thorough Quality Assurance (QA) check on the 32-channel head coil. The results were conclusive:
What makes this discovery even more remarkable is that the MRI manufacturer had conducted their own tests, which didn't indicate any need for coil replacement.
More about VERIFLUX here: https://goldstandardphantoms.com/veriflux/
Gold Standard Phantoms, a pioneer in the production of high-precision MRI phantoms, is thrilled to announce its strategic collaboration with NordicNeuroLab (https://www.nordicneurolab.com), a global leader in MR-conditional medical equipment for functional MRI studies.
This partnership marks a significant milestone in the fields of MRI research, clinical radiology, and neuroscience.
The partnership between Gold Standard Phantoms and Nordic NeuroLab is poised to greatly benefit researchers, clinicians, and technicians working in these critical domains. Specifically, this collaboration will facilitate the provision of fMRI phantoms by Gold Standard Phantoms to NordicNeuroLab's partners and clients. These Phantoms play a pivotal role in ensuring the quality assurance and performance assessment of MR scanners, a fundamental aspect of MRI research and clinical practice.
George Georgitsis, Director of Business Development for Gold Standard Phantoms, expressed enthusiasm about this collaboration, stating:
"This is a great opportunity for Gold Standard Phantoms to enter the clinical market, as NordicNeuroLab is an established leader in providing MRI equipment and services to hospitals worldwide. NordicNeuroLab defines the field of functional MR imaging, offering integrated hardware and software solutions for clinical fMRI, and we are excited that our phantoms are now part of their product and service catalog."
Thomas Omdahl, CEO at NordicNeuroLab, stated about the partnership:
"We are thrilled to join forces with Gold Standard Phantoms to provide our customers access to their top-tier MRI phantoms. This collaboration aligns perfectly with our commitment to promoting the adoption of fMRI in clinical practice, enabling us to offer more comprehensive and reliable products to our clients."
Gold Standard Phantoms is a dynamic spinout company from the renowned University College London's Institute of Neurology. Their mission is to revolutionize medical imaging by bridging the gap between pattern recognition and precise scientific measurement. Through strategic collaborations with clinicians, radiographers, radiological societies, imaging manufacturers, pharmaceutical companies, and regulatory bodies, they offer a comprehensive solution for maintaining standards in quantitative medical imaging. Learn more at www.goldstandardphantoms.com.
NordicNeuroLab is the leading global producer of MR-conditional medical equipment for functional MRI studies, used for pre-surgical assessment and research into various neurological conditions and processes. The company is dedicated to developing and commercializing solutions for functional imaging to improve patient care and clinical efficacy. Additionally, NordicNeuroLab is emerging as a global leader in MR patient comfort solutions and is entering the MR image-guided segment with displays and communication systems for use in the MR environment. Learn more at www.nordicneurolab.com.
The full PDF Press release is here
Bdaily.co.uk, one of the best known online publisher of UK regional business news, and their correspondent Mr. Matthew Neville featured Gold Standard Phantoms relocation to Sheffield's Sheaf Bank Business Park in an article posted on their news portal on the fifth of April 2022.
The article:
"A medical imaging spinout from University College London’s Institute of Neurology has secured office space in Sheffield’s Sheaf Bank Business Park with plans to expand in the region. Gold Standard Phantoms develops products to improve the accuracy of medical imaging devices such as MRI scanners. By using one of the company’s phantoms to calibrate readings, such as the FUNSTAR (Functional Stability Reference), MRI operators can test the stability of their system.
The company also offers a cloud data storage solution, GSP Cloud, which tracks routine quality assurance metrics and provides an overview of system performance for researchers and institutions. Professor Xavier Golay, CEO of Gold Standard Phantoms, commented:
"Sheffield benefits from a pool of highly trained technicians and engineers with skills critical to a manufacturing startup. With Sheffield’s community of universities and researchers, it is a logical place for us to expand.”
Professor Golay is chair of magnetic resonance physics and translational neuroscience at UCL’s Queen Square Institute of Neurology. A world-renowned MRI specialist with over 25 years of experience in MRI R&D, he is the author of more than 180 scientific papers and “among the most frequently cited researchers in the field”. The Sheffield office will be led by Dr Aaron Oliver-Taylor, the company’s CTO and an MRI physicist with close to 15 years experience working in MRI. He added:
“As we continue to drive forward R&D and develop new products, proximity to Sheffield’s research and innovation cluster will play an increasingly important role. The next steps for our company are building a team here in Sheffield and strengthening partnerships with regional researchers and healthcare providers.”
Link to the article at Bdaily.co.uk
