title: Cancer Imaging at the Crossroads of Precision Medicine: Perspective From an Academic Imaging Department in a Comprehensive Cancer Center.
abstract: The authors propose one possible vision for the transformative role that cancer imaging in an academic setting can play in the current era of personalized and precision medicine by sharing a conceptual model that is based on experience and lessons learned designing a multidisciplinary, integrated clinical and research practice at their institution. The authors' practice and focus are disease-centric rather than imaging-centric. A "wall-less" infrastructure has been developed, with bidirectional integration of preclinical and clinical cancer imaging research platforms, enabling rapid translation of novel cancer drugs from discovery to clinical trial evaluation. The talents and expertise of medical professionals, scientists, and staff members have been coordinated in a horizontal and vertical fashion through the creation of Cancer Imaging Consultation Services and the "Adopt-a-Radiologist" campaign. Subspecialized imaging consultation services at the hub of an outpatient cancer center facilitate patient decision support and management at the point of care. The Adopt-a-Radiologist campaign has led to the creation of a novel generation of imaging clinician-scientists, fostered new collaborations, increased clinical and academic productivity, and improved employee satisfaction. Translational cancer research is supported, with a focus on early in vivo testing of novel cancer drugs, co-clinical trials, and longitudinal tumor imaging metrics through the imaging research core laboratory. Finally, a dedicated cancer imaging fellowship has been developed, promoting the future generation of cancer imaging specialists as multidisciplinary, multitalented professionals who are trained to effectively communicate with clinical colleagues and positively influence patient care.
authors.affiliation: Department of Imaging, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts; Department of Radiology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts; Center for Biomedical Imaging in Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts; Tumor Imaging Metrics Core, Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center, Boston, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Annick D
authors.initials: AD
authors.lastname: Van den Abbeele
authors.affiliation: Department of Imaging, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts; Department of Radiology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts. Electronic address: kmkrajewski@partners.org.
authors.forename: Katherine M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Krajewski
authors.affiliation: Department of Imaging, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts; Department of Radiology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Sree Harsha
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Tirumani
authors.affiliation: Department of Imaging, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts; Department of Radiology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Fiona M
authors.initials: FM
authors.lastname: Fennessy
authors.affiliation: Department of Imaging, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts; Department of Radiology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Pamela J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: DiPiro
authors.affiliation: Department of Imaging, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts; Center for Biomedical Imaging in Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Quang-Dé
authors.initials: QD
authors.lastname: Nguyen
authors.affiliation: Tumor Imaging Metrics Core, Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center, Boston, Massachusetts; Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Gordon J
authors.initials: GJ
authors.lastname: Harris
authors.affiliation: Department of Imaging, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts; Department of Radiology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Heather A
authors.initials: HA
authors.lastname: Jacene
authors.affiliation: Department of Imaging, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Greg
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Lefever
authors.affiliation: Department of Imaging, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts; Department of Radiology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Nikhil H
authors.initials: NH
authors.lastname: Ramaiya
mesh_terms: D000046:Academic Medical Centers / Q000458:organization & administration*; D035843:Biomedical Research / Q000458:organization & administration; D001900:Boston; D003191:Comprehensive Health Care / Q000458:organization & administration; D019033:Delivery of Health Care, Integrated / Q000458:organization & administration*; D003952:Diagnostic Imaging / Q000639:trends; D006801:Humans; D017146:Models, Organizational; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D016522:Oncology Service, Hospital / Q000458:organization & administration*; D057285:Precision Medicine / Q000379:methods*; D011872:Radiology Department, Hospital / Q000458:organization & administration*
keywords: Cancer imaging; disease-centric; multidisciplinary; precision medicine; training