Serac Imaging Systems Limited (“Serac Imaging Systems” or “the Company”), the medtech company developing a portable hybrid gamma-optical camera for medical imaging together with Universiti Malaya started clinical testing using the Seracam® camera. It was announced on 13 April in London, United Kingdom.
The primary objective of this investigator sponsored study is to assess the correlation of gamma images obtained using Seracam®, to those obtained with a standard gamma camera for nuclear medical imaging. The study is being led by Dr. Ng Aik Hao, senior lecturer at Universiti Malaya and Professor Yeong Chai Hong, Professor at Taylor’s University, Malaysia, and is being carried out at the Kuala Lumpur Hospital and the Universiti Malaya Medical Centre.
Dr. Ng Aik Hao, clinical medical physicist said they are excited to introduce this breakthrough imaging technology using Seracam®, to the Asian healthcare community, as well as being the first international site to use Seracam®, in a clinical setting.
“It is anticipated that the hybrid gamma-optical camera will have many practical benefits, such as the visual overlay of a gamma image onto an anatomical optical image, which should allow the clinician or surgeon to make a better assessment of radioisotope localisation and hence improved diagnosis. This would be useful for a variety of procedures, particularly intra-operative imaging. We look forward to testing this assumption in the clinic,” he added.
This is a two-centre prospective, non-interventional, single visit study involving 150 patients who have been referred to the nuclear medicine clinic at the study sites for a standard clinical diagnostic test as part of their routine care. This will allow the recording of image data using Seracam® without exposing patients to any additional or unnecessary radiation beyond that received from the standard diagnostic procedure. The study will involve a subjective assessment of the visualisation of radiopharmaceutical uptake between Seracam® and a standard gamma camera, comparing images obtained from the same patient on the same day. The study is expected to run for approximately 18 months and may be extended to include other clinical departments forming a multi-site clinical trial.
“We are delighted to be working with these experienced teams at the Universiti Malaya as they image patients using Seracam® for the first time. As well as the critical comparative imaging data generated by this study, the patient and operator feedback on the user experience are essential as we continue to develop the camera. We are also particularly keen to understand the clinician’s perspective on the potential of this breakthrough technology to improve clinical practice in sentinel lymph node biopsy. We believe that the combination of the co-aligned gamma-optical hybrid imaging capability, alongside the compact size and portability of the camera have real potential to improve and expand nuclear imaging options, diagnosis, and outcomes for patients,” said Chief Executive Officer of Serac Imaging Systems, Mark Rosser.
In the non-randomised and non-blinded study, Seracam® will be used for small organ imaging and lymph node detection in cancer patients. Potential applications to be explored include sentinel lymph node biopsy procedure of patients diagnosed with melanoma, head and neck, pelvic and testis cancer, radioactive seed localisation procedures, and small organ imaging such as thyroid, lacrimal drainage and lymphatic scanning.