Bayer and Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, an internationally renowned university hospital in the capital of Switzerland, have signed an agreement under which Inselspital will introduce Bayer's new medical imaging platform Calantic™ Digital Solutions to its radiology suite.
Through a subscription license agreement of this specialized platform, Inselspital will use digital applications, including artificial intelligence (AI) enabled tools for medical imaging. The platform contains apps that help radiologists and their teams improve prioritization, lesion detection, quantification and productivity, aiming to support healthcare professionals at various stages of their work, from diagnosis through treatment of their patients.
Bayer will also provide Inselspital Bern with services relating to installation, configuration and training of the platform and its applications. In addition, Bayer and Inselspital will jointly generate real-world clinical evidence to demonstrate the benefits of using AI, including the benefits of deploying a platform to enable AI tools for medical imaging.
"AI has the potential to be a game-changer in healthcare and medical imaging," said Prof. Roland Wiest, Deputy Director, Institute of Diagnostic and Interventional Neuroradiology, Bern University Hospital and University of Bern, Switzerland, and head of several educational initiatives in radiology to enable a wider use of AI-based technologies.
The university hospital will install Calantic Digital Solutions in the Institute for Diagnostic and Interventional Neuroradiology in Bern in the coming months.
"As AI is making its way into radiology, we are looking forward to joining forces with renowned experts such as Inselspital Bern to drive its adoption in clinical practice," said Gerd Krueger, President, Radiology, Bayer. "Building on deep medical expertise across a multitude of diagnostic and therapeutic areas at Bayer, AI will continue to be a significant focus for us to help transform patient care."
"We are pleased to work with Inselspital Bern, one of the top university hospitals in Switzerland and worldwide, on offering digital solutions that can help improve productivity and patient outcomes," said Lucia Fernandez Lopez, Head of Digital Solutions Business EMEA, Radiology, Bayer. "We are looking forward to working together with this renowned institution to prove the value of Calantic Digital Solutions to radiology and the entire health system."
About AI in Medical Imaging
The overall global medical imaging AI field, with sales of more than USD 400 million in 2021, is expected to continue growing dynamically. With an estimated compounded annual growth rate of more than 26 percent, the market is forecast to reach USD 1.36 billion by 2026.(1) Innovation powered by AI is needed more than ever. Aging populations and changing lifestyles are leading to an increase in chronic conditions, such as cardiovascular disease and cancer. Consequently, the demand for medical imaging to detect diseases, guide treatment decisions and support therapy planning is growing. AI comes with the value proposition of aiding diagnosis and increasing the throughput of radiological examinations.This is particularly important because time pressure and workload are contributing to the prevalence of burn-out among radiologists. This situation is aggravated by the fact that there is a shortage of trained radiologists.(2) In addition, publications show that the rate of diagnostic errors rise with long hours of overtime; a publication from 2018 mentions approximately 40 million diagnostic errors annually worldwide, involving imaging.(3) Digital technologies can help manage the mounting workload of radiologists and their teams, with the ultimate aim of improving patient care.
About Calantic™ Digital Solutions
Calantic Digital Solutions is a suite of digital radiology AI-enabled applications that assist radiologists and their teams at critical steps within a patient’s treatment journey. The vendor-neutral, cloud-hosted platform includes a growing number of applications designed to aid in prioritization, lesion detection and quantification, as well as apps that automate routine tasks and measurements, improve radiology suites' workflow, and free up time for radiologists and their teams. The offering is orchestrated by body region, initially focusing on thoracic and neurological diseases. Bayer recently announced new collaboration agreements with app developers to broaden the options already available on the platform by including tools designed to help with cardiac, breast and prostate imaging.
About Radiology at Bayer
As a true life-science company with a heritage of over 100 years in radiology, Bayer is committed to providing excellence, from innovative products to high-quality services, to support efficient and optimized patient care. Bayer offers a leading portfolio of contrast media for computed tomography (CT), X-ray and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), devices for their precise administration, informatics solutions and a medical imaging platform delivering access to applications, including those enabled by AI. Bayer's radiology products generated sales close to EUR 2 billion in 2022. Based on the company’s ambition to outperform the radiology market's average annual growth rate of 5% by 2030, Bayer is highly committed to research and development, which includes leveraging artificial intelligence and driving innovation in medical imaging. Each of these offerings provides effective tools to support radiologists in their mission to deliver treatment-critical answers and a clear direction - from diagnosis to care.
About Bayer
Bayer is a global enterprise with core competencies in the life science fields of health care and nutrition. Its products and services are designed to help people and the planet thrive by supporting efforts to master the major challenges presented by a growing and aging global population. Bayer is committed to driving sustainable development and generating a positive impact with its businesses. At the same time, the Group aims to increase its earning power and create value through innovation and growth. The Bayer brand stands for trust, reliability and quality throughout the world. In fiscal 2022, the Group employed around 101,000 people and had sales of 50.7 billion euros. R&D expenses before special items amounted to 6.2 billion euros.
1. Signify Research: AI in Medical Imaging - World Market Analysis 2022
2. The Complexities of Physician Supply and Demand: Projections From 2018 to 2033. AAMC. https://www.aamc.org/media/45976/download; the Royal College of Radiologists: Clinical radiology UK workforce census 2020 report: https://www.rcr.ac.uk/system/files/publication/field_publication_files/clinical-radiology-uk-workforce-census-2020-report.pdf
3. Fundamentals of Diagnostic Error in Imaging, Itri et al. (2018) https://pubs.rsna.org/doi/full/10.1148/rg.2018180021