Parascript and Volpara Establish Partnership for Improved Early Cancer Detection

DENVER - April 11, 2017 - PRLog -- Parascript, LLC, an innovator in the early detection of breast cancer with AccuDetect^® Computer-Aided Detection (CAD) for Mammography, today announced its partnership with Volpara Solutions, which offers automated breast density assessment software. Volpara^®Density™, the most clinically validated 3D Density solution, automatically generates an objective measurement of volumetric breast density from digital mammography and tomosynthesis data. Independent research has associated an increased risk of cancer for patients with high breast density, which can also make cancer harder to detect on conventional mammograms. Together, Parascript AccuDetect CAD and VolparaDensity provide complementary early cancer detection solutions.

"This partnership with Volpara is a defining moment for us in early cancer detection for successfully fighting cancer. VolparaDensity is a reliable volumetric breast density measurement tool that helps radiologists better consider who might benefit from additional screening," said Gina Dailey, Director of Medical Sales at Parascript. "This coupled with AccuDetect CAD, which also supports more accurate detection and delivers high performance on dense and extremely dense breasts, provides an improved solution and better option for healthcare providers."

Screening patients with dense breasts can pose additional challenges to healthcare providers since dense tissue has been shown to hide tumors and is associated with an increased risk of not only breast cancer, but more aggressive breast cancer. Accurate automated measurement of volumetric breast density assists radiologists in each patient's personalized screening and decision making for additional diagnostics. Correctly identifying patients at low risk is also important to avoid unnecessary tests because it can be stressful and costly for patients called back for further assessment. Parascript AccuDetect CAD, powered by deep learning, uses multiple independent cancer detection algorithms and a unique patented voting methodology to combine its findings. Comparing the results of the multiple image recognition processes allows for improved sensitivity and reduced false-positive rates.

In a study by the Karolinska Institute in Sweden of 41,102 women from KARMA (KARolinska MAmmography project for risk prediction of breast cancer) that looked at mammography screenings and clinical mammography at four hospitals in Sweden, VolparaDensity was validated across multiple mammography vendor platforms. This study concluded that automated measurement of volumetric mammographic density using VolparaDensity was a promising tool for breast cancer risk assessment.

Cleared by the FDA, HealthCanada, the TGA and CE-marked, Volpara Solutions technologies, including VolparaDensity, are currently in use in 35 countries, and more than 9 million women have had their breast density analyzed using VolparaDensity.

"Our new partnership with Parascript demonstrates our continued commitment to early cancer detection through the accurate measurement of volumetric breast density, now combined with AccuDetect's improved sensitivity and ability to reduce false-positive rates," said Ralph P. Highnam, PhD, Chief Executive Officer at Volpara. "Independent research investigating the link between volumetric density and risk is continuing, with an eye on identifying optimal screening approaches tailored to each patient's needs and level of risk."

In addition to more accurate detection, AccuDetect processes images more rapidly, which can improve response time to patients. AccuDetect CAD processes at 11 seconds per image, the fastest of all available FDA-approved CAD systems. The average CAD system takes 30 seconds or more to process a single image. AccuDetect CAD also supports early, more accurate detection, delivering high performance on dense and extremely dense breasts, according to a clinical study reported in Clinical Imaging (M. Lobbes et al., Clinical Imaging 37 (2013) 283-288).

Last week, Parascript and Volpara both exhibited at the SBI Breast Imaging Symposium in Los Angeles, held on April 6-8, 2017, and provided product demonstrations. Those unable to attend the symposium are encouraged to contact Parascript (https://www.parascript.com/medical-imaging/) and Volpara (http://www.volparasolutions.com/) for product demonstrations.