Scientists scope out bio images -- Breast cancer expert highlights speakers

The Commercial Appeal
October 24, 2006
By Daniel Connolly

Physicians have long sought methods to diagnose problems hidden under the patient's skin. Methods have advanced far beyond X-rays, and researchers are meeting in Memphis this week to discuss the latest techniques to peer inside the human body.

Ultrasound imaging, nuclear imaging and other topics are on the agenda at the third annual Memphis BioImaging Symposium Thursday and Friday at the Fogelman Executive Center on the University of Memphis campus.

The conference is meant for biomedical scientists and engineers as well as students, hospital administrators and others interested in the latest imaging techniques.

It will feature presentations and lectures by several well-known scientists, including Martin J. Yaffe of the University of Toronto, who researches digital mammography.

"Dr. Yaffe heads the bill of prestigious group of scientists we've attracted for our third annual conference, which is clearly ranked as a world-class event in the field," said Gary Keyes, chair of the biomedical engineering and imaging department at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center, one of the local sponsors of the event.

Other sponsors include Luminetx, maker of the VeinViewer, a device which uses infrared light to project an image of underlying blood vessels onto the skin, making it easier for workers to locate veins.

The Memphis Bioworks Foundation, a group dedicated to improving the local bioscience industry, is also sponsoring the event, as are St. Jude Children's Research Hospital and global medical device companies Medtronic and Smith & Nephew, which have major operations in Memphis.

The conference starts Thursday evening with talks on research funding by representatives of the National Cancer Institute and the National Science Foundation. It runs all day Friday.

- Daniel Connolly: 529-5296

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Third Annual Memphis BioImaging Symposium

The scientific conference focuses on methods to see inside the human body.

Thursday and Friday, Fogelman Executive Center at the University of Memphis, 330 Deloach.

For more information, visit membis.org or call 448-7099.