New automated image contouring software to be unveiled at Florida oncology conference

Segasist's pioneering Reconcillio platform promises dramatic boosts in productivity and treatment accuracy

TORONTO, Sept. 7, 2011 /PRNewswire/ - Segasist Technologies, a Canadian software company developing next-generation image contouring platforms for biomedical applications, announced today that it will soon launch its ground-breaking auto-contouring software, "Reconcillio".  Its automated capabilities build consensus among clinical experts about the exact boundaries of tumours and also checks their consistency.

Segasist Technologies will release the first version of "Reconcillio" at the American Society for Radiation Oncology's (ASTRO) 2011 meeting in Miami Beach, Florida, October 2-4. This initial release is intended for research and training.

Unlike other contouring software, Reconcillio can automatically generate consensus contours for any medical image - without requiring multiple clinicians to delineate the same image.

"Contouring is delineating tumours/organs in any medical image," explains Dr. Hamid Tizhoosh, the CEO of Segasist Technologies, "different doctors simply contour differently. Even the same doctor may contour the same image differently, if observed for a second time. This is a real problem that hinders quality control. If several doctors are available to contour the same image, then a 'consensus contour' could be built. However, this is not a realistic solution, for we don't have the luxury of multiple doctors treating/diagnosing the same patient."

Indeed, the inter-observer variability is sometimes so drastic that experts may agree on only 50% of the total delineated target volume or even less.

"Building consensus is pivotal for reducing the variability" says Tizhoosh, "Reconcillio, for the first time, enables us to do this for a given expert without depending on explicit contouring by their colleagues. Reconcillio can also help decrease intra-observer variability by verifying the consistency of the same user using the information of previous cases contoured by that user."

Providing "Consistent Contours" for doctors is another striking feature of Reconcillio. Using the archived information of each user to point to inconsistencies has not been possible before.

"We believe the concepts behind Reconcillio will revolutionize the contouring landscape in medical imaging," says Tizhoosh, "There is much this technology can do to assist clinicians. So establishing a quality framework for efficient and accurate image analysis is our ultimate goal, and Reconcillio is our significant and decisive step in that direction."

Visit Segasist at ASTRO 2011, Hall D, Booth #617.

For more information contact Dr. Hamid R. Tizhoosh, (647) 260-7834 or visit http://www.segasist.com.

SOURCE Segasist Technologies