The first of these companies to receive such support is Tricog, a Bangalore-based company that seeks to use cloud-connected ECG devices in Indian medical centers to enhance heart attack survival rates by cutting times between symptoms and treatment.

5) World’s first MR Linac radiation therapy system installed in Michigan

In addition to Siemens’ 7T and Bruker’s Biospec 15.2T imagers, another device made its debut this year in the form of the ViewRay MRIdian Linac, the only FDA-approved linear accelerator-based MR-guided radiation therapy system.



Following its approval in February, the first system in the world was installed in June at the Henry Ford Cancer Institute in Michigan, offering users the chance to use MR imaging to visualize movement of tumors in the areas of the body, such as the liver, pancreas and lungs, during therapy and make real-time adaptive changes to ensure more precise treatment.


The facility used the scanner for the first time in July on a patient with prostate cancer. Doctors were able to align the tumor with treatment beams and make real-time adjustments to avoid hitting sensitive, nearby organs, such as the stomach or liver.

The system can also treat patients with breast, prostate, kidney and gynecological cancers.

ViewRay showcased the system in September at the 59th American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) meeting and presented data collected from a study that showed how the system’s delivery of high, targeted radiation doses produced low toxicity and prolonged survival in prostate cancer patients.

ViewRay MRIdian Linac is not the only MR linear accelerator that had people talking this year. Elekta was set to receive CE approval for its Unity system before pushing back the time frame for it to 2018 so that it could add additional functional imaging capabilities and take more time to validate its linac control system. It also delayed the expected start for sales from 2019 to 2020.

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