The American College of Radiology has challenged the validity of two studies published this week in the Archives of Internal Medicine that link the overuse of CT scans with thousands of new cancer diagnoses and deaths. At the same time, ACR acknowledged that widespread CT scan use has resulted in increased radiation exposure for Americans, and called for greater oversight and vigilance to prevent needless overuse.

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A team of researchers from the US National Cancer Institute and Columbia University found that the average range of radiation exposure from getting a coronary calcium scan after every five years would cause 42% additional cases of cancer among 100,000 men and 62 additional cases among 100,000 women. The US Preventive Services Task Force recommends against using CT scans in screening programs, and the American Heart Association says they should be used for “selected individuals” at intermediate risk.

Royal Philips Electronics has unveiled two innovative solutions to help radiologists save time and improve patient diagnosis, at the 94th annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) in Chicago. At RSNA, Philips announced that it is partnering with the University of Chicago Medical Center (UCMC) on a first-of-kind closed loop imaging research trial. The purpose of the ongoing trial is to take a holistic view of radiology workflow and integrate information systems together with imaging systems to remove inefficiency at all points within the imaging loop.

According to a team of researchers led by Dr. Steven Raman, the chances of patients having an unnecessary appendix operation have declined since 1996, as doctors are turning towards CT scans to diagnose appendicitis. Published in the New England Journal of Medicine, the study involved 1081 patients who had their appendix removed, and the figure of 20% CT scans in 1996 went up to 85% in 2006.