Segasist Technologies, a Canadian software company developing contouring productivity tools for medical imaging, has announced the receipt of funding from The Health Technology Exchange (HTX) towards support of clinical validation of its software, to be conducted at the Lawson Health Research Institute and London Health Sciences Centre (London, Ontario). Experts from Sunnybrook Research Institute and Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre will also participate in the validation process by providing input in the form of gold standard contours.

Segasist PMR-R is a software tool developed for the purpose of processing Magnetic Resonance Images (MRI) of the prostate. Version 1.0, released on May 17, 2010, was created to assist researchers presently developing a role for MRI in diagnosis, tracking and treatment of prostate cancer. Version 1.1 released on August 24, 2010, following extensive internal validation, continues to assist prostate MRI researchers with a variety of improvements to the previous version. Segasist Technologies will be releasing version 2.0 of the software at RSNA 2010.

The funding received from HTX will augment grants from other sources to enable a pre-calibrated version of Segasist PMR-R to be validated with the ultimate goal of releasing Segasist PMR-C for clinical use following regulatory approval.

“The purpose of the validation process will be to show that the Segasist PMR platform offers significant time savings for clinicians performing image segmentation and volume calculations, as well as a high level of semi-automated contouring accuracy” explains Hamid Tizhoosh, CEO of Segasist Technologies, “Segasist PMR is the first commercial software of its kind providing a complete solution for segmentation and volumetric measurements of the prostate gland in MR images” he added.

From Invention through to Innovation to International Invoice, HTX supports emerging and established Ontario-based companies to develop, produce and commercialize innovative market-leading advanced health technologies through performance-based loans and convertible debentures. HTX is funded by the Government of Ontario through the Ministry of Research and Innovation.

The Lawson Health Research Institute is one of the largest hospital-based research institutes in Canada. The researchers at Lawson focus their efforts on the development of new knowledge that can be applied directly to patient care within the hospitals. The research at Lawson expands the continuum of life - from birth to death - and this is reflected in the research themes that mirror the clinical areas of London Health Sciences Centre and St. Joseph's Health Care, London. Lawson has joined with its partner research and clinical institutions, among others, the London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC), to provide core research facilities that can be utilized by investigators in London. Lawson has over 1,200 people including principal investigators, researchers, technicians, support staff and trainees working at seven sites across London.

The London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC), one of Canada’s largest acute-care teaching hospitals, is dedicated to excellence in patient care, teaching and research. Many national and international medical breakthroughs have been pioneered at LHSC. The physicians and staff number is more than 10,000 and, together, they provided care for more than one million patients last year.

Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre is inventing the future of health care for the one million patients the hospital cares for each year through the dedication of its more than 10,000 staff and volunteers. An internationally recognized leader in research and education and a full affiliation with the University of Toronto distinguishes Sunnybrook as one of Canada’s premier academic health sciences centres.

Segasist Technologies is a software company based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada focused on developing contouring productivity tools for use with advanced visualization modalities including MR, Ultrasound, and CT. The company's premiere product - Segasist Segmentation Assistant software - is designed for use in improving accuracy in delineating lesions/organs in radiation planning and radiology.