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The technology, developed in partnership with the University of Sheffield and GE HealthCare, is designed to diagnose respiratory conditions including COPD and asthma, which cost the NHS over £6 billion annually, by using a novel hyperpolarised xenon gas imaging technique
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Funded by part of an EPSRC Prosperity Partnership grant, the project will now undergo a medical device trial with healthy volunteers and aims to bring vital diagnostic tools closer to patients in their communities
Revolutionary new technology could make MRI scanners cost effective, more widely available to local communities and help save lives, thanks to a pioneering collaboration between the University of Sheffield and GE HealthCare.
The Low-Field Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) Scanner, developed in partnership with leading global medical technology company GE HealthCare, is designed to tackle respiratory conditions that impact the lives of millions and cost the NHS over £6 billion annually. Respiratory disease is the UK’s fourth biggest killer, yet among the most neglected conditions in terms of advanced diagnostics and effective treatments.
By revolutionising the diagnosis of lung conditions such as cystic fibrosis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), interstitial pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), lung cancer and asthma, the new technology could improve patient outcomes, make diagnosis more accessible and generate substantial savings for the NHS.
This innovative research programme received Government funding through EPSRC Prosperity Partnerships, jointly awarded by the UKRI Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and the Medical Research Council (MRC) for academic-industrial collaborations. The Low-Field MRI scanner project was among 19 collaborative EPSRC Prosperity Partnerships awarded in 2023, with a collective value of £149 million across all partnerships.
The technology was officially unveiled at a ceremony at the University MRI unit at Royal Hallamshire Hospital today, marking what is the first MHRA medical device trial sponsored by the University of Sheffield.
The research team is now conducting a trial with 60 healthy volunteers to establish normative ranges, or what is considered typical or expected for healthy people, before proceeding with scans in patients.
Jim Wild, Professor of Magnetic Resonance Physics and Co-director of the University of Sheffield’s Insigneo Institute, said: “This new technology is uniquely placed to help detect early signs of lung disease or damage in the lungs which would otherwise go undetected by routine tests.
“Highly sensitive and radiation-free, the technology is safe for all ages, even children and infants. Scans are fast, lasting just minutes, and can be repeated as often as needed to monitor lung changes during disease progression and treatment.
“Right now, patients often face lengthy waiting lists and distant travel to access an MRI scanner to receive a diagnosis and begin treatment. Our Low-Field MRI Scanner aims to revolutionise this, opening up the potential for significantly more cost effective, smaller scanners in local health centres. This would bring a vital diagnostic tool closer to patients in their communities, speeding up diagnosis and improving health outcomes.”
Simon McGuire, Zone President Northern, Eastern, Southern Europe at GE HealthCare said: “At GE HealthCare, we’re committed to advancing precision care and making diagnostic innovation more accessible. This collaboration with the University of Sheffield exemplifies how we can harness AI and novel imaging techniques to reimagine MRI technology - bringing vital respiratory diagnostics closer to patients and communities, while reducing environmental impact and costs.”
Professor Charlotte Deane, Executive Chair at EPSRC said: "Our Prosperity Partnerships are harnessing collaborative research by connecting the UK's leading research communities with businesses. They enable fundamental research that delivers innovation for individual businesses and industrial sectors, whilst driving wider economic benefits through improved productivity.
“This MRI scanner technology is a great example of the impact of the Prosperity Partnerships initiative and it’s fantastic to see that it has the potential return on investment by providing earlier diagnoses, saving the NHS money and enabling access to healthcare services in the community.”
Most MRI scanners currently in use in the UK are high-field systems, which employ very strong superconducting magnets and radio waves to produce highly detailed images of the body’s internal structures. While invaluable for diagnosing and managing a wide range of conditions, these powerful magnets require large quantities of liquid helium for cooling, increasing their cost and environmental footprint.
For decades, high-field MRI scanners have been the preferred diagnostic technology due to their superior image quality. However, recent advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) have opened new possibilities, demonstrating that previously deemed outdated low-field technology can be revitalised.
Crucially, low-field MRI scanners require significantly less or, in some cases, no helium at all. While the images produced by conventional low-field scanners are typically of lower quality, the Sheffield-GE HealthCare research team used AI to reconstruct images to a quality comparable to high-field scans. This is achieved by leveraging existing data from thousands of high-field scans to train the AI algorithms.
What makes the new technology unique is its use of a novel xenon gas imaging technique. The team uses a special process to magnetise the gas, which the patient then inhales. This process makes the normally invisible gas visible during a scan, highlighting areas of the lungs where oxygen would typically travel and allowing for the precise detection of airway changes and detailed information about the lungs’ intricate structure and physiological function. Initially proven with high-field MRI, this imaging technique has been successfully used in hundreds of patients, with the partnership aiming to duplicate the technique with low-field scanners.
The project team will also use the opportunity to study the behaviour and properties of MRI contrast agents - liquids given to a patient to make certain tissues and blood vessels show more clearly in scans - at the lower field strength.
Beyond the technology’s potential to revolutionise the access to high precision MRI diagnostics for imaging all body areas in the UK, it could have a global impact . Low- and middle-income countries have a severe lack of MRI scanners compared to wealthier counterparts, contributing to global health inequities. The low-field MRI scanner’s relative portability, significantly lower cost, and reduced infrastructure and maintenance requirements address many of the barriers faced by these countries in acquiring such technology.
Science Minister Lord Vallance said: “MRI scanners have been transformative for healthcare, helping medics better diagnose a host of conditions, including cancer, non-invasively. For many patients, they are life-saving, helping them to get the treatments they need sooner.
“From Sir Peter Mansfield's work through to today, UK-led science has long had a leading role in putting MRI to work, to benefit patients. Made possible thanks to part of our record £22.8 billion backing for R&D, this new low-field technology is now making MRI scans easier and cheaper than ever, allowing more patients to access MRI scans, protecting people’s health and easing pressure on the NHS.”