Grand River Hospital partners with startup to test X-ray technology

KITCHENER — Grand River Hospital is partnering with a local startup to test new X-ray technology that has the potential to detect lung cancer earlier and with less radiation.

Patients with existing lung nodules will have a picture of their chest taken using KA Imaging’s multi-energy digital X-ray detector along with the traditional CT scan. The images will be compared for quality.

“This is the first trial ever of its kind,” said Amol S. Karnick, chief executive officer of the startup out of the University of Waterloo, with an office in Kitchener.

The advantage of the new technology compared to CT scans is that it’s less expensive, portable, faster, and uses much less radiation.

“This technology can be retrofitted to what’s already there,” said KA Imaging founder Karim S. Karim, an electrical and computer engineering professor at UW. “It’s perfect for smaller communities where resources are strapped.”

Images are sent instantly to a computer to review and produce different views that separate bone and soft tissue. That’s a great help when looking for lung cancer, which can be obscured by the ribs.

“We just strip out whatever isn’t necessary in the image,” Karim said.

The Kitchener hospital is keen about the pilot study and how it will translate into better patient care. This type of cuttingedge research is not commonly done in community hospitals.

“It’s bringing valuable research to the hospital,” said Carla Girolametto, director of research, innovation and clinical trials at Grand River.

The plan is to recruit up to 30 patients for the study, with four already signed up.

“It’s all local,” she said. “The patients were thrilled about that.”

The homegrown technology was a plus for patient Grant Jutzi, who was happy to sign up for the study if it will help the hospital improve care. The New Hamburg man, who had colon cancer and now lesions in both lungs, called the technology a “true blessing” if it reduces a patient’s exposure to radiation.

“I’ve had so much radiation. I just know it’s not good,” said Jutzi, who gets a CT scan of his lungs every three months.

Karnick said doctors and radiologists are excited about the possibilities for the prototype technology. Detecting and monitoring lung cancer is just the first avenue KA Imaging is exploring.

The low-cost, portable device can be used anywhere from the patient’s bedside to remote communities in the developing world. It can screen for disease, and guide diagnosis and treatment.

“We’ve just scratched the surface at this stage,” Karnick said.