icometrix receives NIHR AI in Health and Care Award
- Milan Walraevens
- Mar 3, 2023
- 4 min read
Updated: May 13
London - March 3, 2023 — icometrix & Queen Mary University of London receive prestigious AI Award from the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) to investigate the impact of AI applied to MRI in the care of people with multiple sclerosis (MS)
icometrix & Queen Mary University of London receive prestigious AI Award from National Institute for Care & Health Research (NIHR) to undertake a project called “Artificial intelligence-assisted magnetic resonance imaging for quality, efficiency and equity in the NHS care of multiple sclerosis (AssistMS)”
AssistMS will investigate the impact of AI applied to MRI on decision making, clinical outcomes and health economics in the care of people with multiple sclerosis (MS)
icometrix is proud to announce that, together with Queen Mary University of London (QMUL), it has been awarded the prestigious AI Award in Health and Care. This collaborative program will investigate the impact of AI on the assessment of MRI and decision making in the context of multi-disciplinary team meetings for people with MS. It is hoped that this research will lead to better care for people with MS (pwMS).
The programme called AssistMS, is a collaboration between icometrix, QMUL, the University of Nottingham, and Barts Health and Nottingham University Hospitals Trusts. The project is further supported by the East Midlands Imaging Network (EMRAD), InHealth Group and the MS Society of Great Britain & Northern Ireland.
AssistMS will focus on the reporting of MRI head by neuroradiologists in routine clinical practice. pwMS receiving disease-modifying treatments (DMT) undergo annual MRI of the central nervous system to monitor disease activity. This allows clinicians to detect whether the DMT is working or not. MRI is much more sensitive than clinical indices, and detecting disease activity early enables changing DMT such that MRI-detectable disease activity does not lead to clinical deterioration. However, detecting the often subtle changes on MRI is time-consuming, tiring and, thus, prone to human error.
Dr. Ashok Adams, Consultant Neuroradiologist at Barts Health, says: “Support for AssistMS will be invaluable to us as a neuroimaging department as it will help with the accurate evaluation of scans in order to guide patients’ therapy. This is at a time when imaging departments are under increased pressure to provide timely imaging and scan reports”
The software tested in AssistMS, icobrain ms, detects and highlights subtle changes on MRI brain, and provides summary reports. We hope the technology will enable clinicians to make better informed DMT for and with pwMS. Clinicians will be able to detect signs of disease activity faster and more effectively, enabling them to make quicker decisions about a possible DMT switch.
Klaus Schmierer, Professor of Neurology at QMUL and joint lead of AssistMS: “I am thrilled about this generous award funded by NIHR through the NHS AI Lab’s AI in Health and Care Award. If successful, AssistMS will have a significant impact on pwMS’ quality of life as well as equity and efficiency of MS care across the UK.”
Nikos Evangelou, Professor of Neurology at the University of Nottingham and honorary consultant Neurologist at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust: "As part of monitoring patients with Multiple Sclerosis, we do lots of MRI scans of the brain. Checking, measuring and comparing scans with those taken in the previous years can take a long time. We hope with this study we will learn how to use “cutting edge technology for automatic scans reading” to help us to treat our patients appropriately, having all the information we need".
As part of AssistMS, neuro-radiologists and radiologists will perform their assessment with and without the support of icobrain ms. The project will investigate the accuracy and the consistency of the AI tool in detecting disease activity and other clinically important features in MRI brain images from about 1300 pwMS cared for in east London and Nottingham. The randomised design of AssistMS will enable comparison between standard and AI-assisted MRI assessment. Moreover, AssistMS investigates the impact of the technology on clinical decisions, an understudied area, as well as exploring the economic value of the technology. The project is expected to start in the coming months and will run for three years. Results will be published in peer reviewed publications and lay reports.
Ms Rachel Horne, PPI lead of AssistMS, says: “This is really exciting news. What this means - for people with MS (like myself) - is that by using AI to analyse brain scans, neurologists will be able to get a much more accurate idea of how each patient’s disease course is progressing and, in turn, to recommend the best possible treatment for that person.”
Geoff Searle, InHealth Chief Executive and AssistMS partner complemented: “We’re so pleased to be supporting this fantastic approach to innovation and providing technology that has the potential to significantly improve care pathways for patients affected by Multiple Sclerosis. As a trusted NHS partner of more than 30 years, it’s great to be able to build on our already strong relationship with Barts Health NHS Trust and Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust, where we deliver MRI scans for both, providing our expertise in scanning and reporting to the study.”
Wim Van Hecke , CEO icometrix concluded: "We are extremely grateful and excited to share this prestigious Award with QMUL, and especially being able to collaborate on the AssistMS programme pushing the boundaries of healthcare further through our validated and potentially cost-saving icobrain ms solution. Our joint efforts will undoubtedly transform care and improve outcomes for many PwMS for the better across Europe and beyond."
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