Siemens Healthineers and Mayo Clinic will expand a strategic collaboration aimed at improving diagnosis and treatment of neurodegenerative disease and cancer through new imaging and interventional technologies.
The partners said Thursday they signed an agreement that covers management of prostate cancer and metastatic liver tumors, in addition to neurodegenerative disease.
Eric Williamson, chair of diagnostic radiology at Mayo Clinic, said the effort aims to bring advanced imaging, artificial intelligence and new treatment approaches into everyday care, potentially enabling earlier diagnoses and more personalized treatment plans.
“Our goal is to make care more precise, less invasive, and more responsive to each patient’s needs,” Williamson said in a statement.
In neurodegenerative disease, the collaboration includes work on AI-enabled magnetic resonance imaging protocols for improved diagnostic accuracy and patient monitoring.
A focus will be clinical adoption and translation of ultra-high-field MRI protocols, which have high resolution and enhanced contrast for diagnostic and surgical planning that can aid in complex neurological disease states.
Imaging tests are typically used to help diagnose Alzheimer’s disease, where an MRI can show a pattern of shrinkage in the brain.
For prostate cancer, the role of AI in minimizing biopsies will be investigated, along with integration of advanced imaging into diagnostic and therapeutic procedures. In liver cancer, efforts will focus on clinical translation of image-guided technologies for precise detection and treatment of metastases.
Other areas of collaboration include work to improve the patient surgical experience and operational efficiency, and integration of whole-body PET/CT in treatment for certain cancers and anatomical and metabolic MR imaging in diagnostic and therapeutic planning.
Mayo Clinic’s partnerships with imaging companies include a 2023 collaboration with GE HealthCare on radiology research. The two organizations announced an initiative late last year to integrate imaging, AI and patient monitoring to improve cancer care through personalized therapy.
Siemens Healthineers and Mayo are also working together on a project to improve hospital air quality and previously collaborated on technology to reduce radiation exposure from CT scanners.
