On Friday 29 October, we inaugurated our new CT laboratory at BioClinicum, adjacent to Karolinska University Hospital in Solna. In addition to a tour of the laboratory and an ensuing reception, several speeches were given on the significance of the new CT laboratory. The following is an excerpt from the speech given by Sigbritt Karlsson, president of KTH Royal Institute of Technology.

“I would like to congratulate all of you who have worked so hard for many years to bring this new instrument here. This is an example of the drive that a researcher must have, to believe in one’s idea and work really hard to realise it. Way back in the early 1980s, when I was a student at KTH, I read a course on medical technology. Today, this field has grown, leading to the establishment of MedTechLabs, as well as to what is now SciLifeLab, a joint effort between ourselves, KI, Uppsala University and Stockholm University. These are fantastic organisations that reveal how crucial engineers are to Swedish and international healthcare.”

“That said, another incredibly important factor is collaboration. There are of course many pressing societal problems that demand solutions, and ideally we would like these yesterday, so it is vital that we have diligent researchers pondering them before the rest of us. And to have this multidisciplinary, interdisciplinary facility, MedTechLabs, constantly developing new equipment, thinking further ahead than we others, this is incredibly important to us all.”

“Because I’m sure we all have people close to us who are ill in various ways and, of course, we want them to have the very best care and the very best technical solutions. Clinical researchers and our researchers at KTH work together to build better diagnostics, something that is essential to reducing suffering and can even extend human life. So, our close collaboration with Karolinska Institutet and Region Stockholm is extraordinarily important. It has provided KTH researchers with a better, patient-centred understanding of the problems and how we need to work in order to solve them.”

“In turn, KTH has worked on the mathematics and physics of this machine. It is this that has made it possible to increase the precision, to increase the resolution. We contribute with biomedical imaging, machine learning and artificial intelligence, techniques that are also necessary to continue this development. Today, MedTechLabs is a well-established platform for cutting-edge medical technology initiatives and we are seeing more and more of these becoming clinical reality, in patient-centred healthcare. Today, we take the next step with this photon-counting imaging technology.”

On Friday 29 October, we inaugurated our new CT laboratory at BioClinicum, adjacent to Karolinska University Hospital in Solna. In addition to a tour of the laboratory and an ensuing reception, several speeches were given on the significance of the new CT laboratory. The following is an excerpt from the speech given by Ole Petter Ottersen, president of Karolinska Institutet.

“Events here today have significance far beyond the equipment and technique in question; in fact, beyond even the patients that they will help. Because this is an example of how this district, our dream team comprising the Region, KTH, KI – MedTechLabs – is on the frontline. And it is this that is so important. So, please allow me to congratulate you again because this has significance. All of our ambitions – whether that be the Region’s ambition to become a leading global life science cluster, KI’s ambition to conduct groundbreaking research or, of course, the ambitions of KTH and the hospital to be among the world’s best – are inextricably linked with this. But let me take you back to 1979, a big year for this technology, when Godfrey Hounsfield and Allan Cormack were awarded the Nobel Prize for their work on computerised tomography.”

“In his Nobel Lecture, Hounsfield explained that the first scan he performed took 10 days! Consider that. He makes no mention of how long the subsequent analysis took. Then there is a marvellously interesting section if his lecture: ‘What improvements should we expect to see in the future?’. Well, one of his greatest dreams was that it might one day be possible to look at the heart, a feat that was completely impossible at the time because, of course, the heart moves. However, when he spoke about how resolution could be improved, he never believed that we would have come as far as we have today. That was beyond his imagination. Now, with silicon-based detectors, we not only achieve much better resolution but we also obtain a great deal more important data from the equipment. Had he been with us today, Hounsfield would have been extremely impressed.”

On Friday 29 October, we inaugurated our new CT laboratory at BioClinicum, adjacent to Karolinska University Hospital in Solna. In addition to a tour of the laboratory and an ensuing reception, several speeches were given on the significance of the new CT laboratory. The following is an excerpt from the speech given by Irene Svenonius Irene Svenonius, regional chair for finance, Region Stockholm:

“We save people’s lives, just as Staffan Holmin says, using new technology the scope of application for which we can perhaps only imagine today. Now that you’re able to use it to help patients and develop it further, it will make a great difference, just as you have done with your treatment of stroke patients. Until now, who could have dreamed of this? It is quite astonishing and something else that you have developed together: Karolinska Institutet, Karolinska University Hospital and KTH. This is a dream partnership and, if I may say so as regional chair for finance at Region Stockholm, I am extremely proud that we as a region have committed to cofinancing MedTechLabs.

I can say that, in my opinion, every krona has been well spent; we are talking about the future of our patients. That said, I shall not disguise the fact that we have major strategic plans for the future of Hagastaden and Region Stockholm as a whole, which is that we intend to become one of the five leading regions for life science research in the world.

Investments like this, and the research that Mats Danielsson and his team have conducted in collaboration with Karolinska Institutet and Karolinska University Hospital, is precisely the cutting-edge knowledge we want the region to stand for and that will carry us forward. While this leads to solutions for patients, my hope is that it will also bring new businesses and new researchers to this unique place. Here, where we in the region together with Karolinska Institutet, and KTH Royal Institute of Technology, which is only a few bus stops away, have invested heavily in research infrastructure, which we of course want to come to use for the patients benefit.

So, on overall, I consider today to be a splendid example of what we wish to achieve in future.”

“From Quarks to Cancer Control – Science and Lessons Learned Bringing Photon-Counting Detectors to Spectral CT” was the headline when Mats Danielsson, professor in physics and program leader at MedTechLabs held a seminar lecture for Johns Hopkins Medical Engineering, May 18.

We asked Mats about his lecture and what he told the attendees, consisting of both faculty, management and students, about Swedish medtech research and development.

– The lecture focused on my experiences from translating research into use for the benefit of society. From my point of view, it is the application of good ideas from research into startups that it the fastest track to create value. I also took the chance of explaining that Sweden, though being a small country, always ranks very high for innovation in international comparison, that Forbes put Sweden on second place after the UK in their 2019 ranking of “Best countries for business”.
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One of the questions from the students was if they would need to choose between the academy or the industry. Mats’ answer was that it’s becoming more common for researchers to switch back and forth. And that KTH Royal Institute of Technology is generous in letting their researchers get leave long enough to create useful things outside the university.
 
– Also, I explained the Swedish “Teacher Exception”, letting researchers at the universities own the rights to their research and giving them the possibility to apply for patents. I promote this system even it other systems, which are common at US universities, can also work. The most important thing is probably that the researcher is present – in some way at least – all the way from the beginning and into the launch of the product.
 
Mats Danielssons work is a good example of strong interaction with industry, having built up several companies from his research at KTH. He has also seen an openness from investors towards researchers when it comes to making creative use of scientific results which may not have delivered on the original purpose.
 
– Sometimes it’s clear that what you were aiming for originally with the project, will not work. Today it’s possible to suggest a pivot, asking the investor to fund another angle. I myself did this with a project on stacked prism lens technology, where we shifted application from medical imaging to the use in telescopes for astronomy, which we later published in Nature Astronomy.
 
Mats is a firm believer in that researchers should build up a stack of ideas. If you wait five years, the idea might have become more relevant and the technology to develop the idea might have matured enough to move forward.
 
He also advised the students to learn enough mathematics and programming during their studies. If not, there is a clear risk that they cannot compete with students who have majored in these areas.
 
– Everybody needs to know some Matlab and Python.
 
Researchers such as Jeffrey Siewerdsen at Johns Hopkins acted as important advisors when MedTechLabs was formed. Today there is an ongoing dialogue between Johns Hopkins, KTH and the centre on additional collaboration, like the possibility for master student exchange.

On April 19, Koenraad H. Nieboer (Hans), Professor, MD, University Hospital Brussels held a speech on a MedTechLabs seminar. We asked him about his research and why Spectral CT is getting much attention.

Hi Hans, You just held a well visited seminar for MedTechLabs on clinical implementation of spectral imaging. Over 100 professionals signed up for the event! Why is this such a hot topic?

I think it is a hot topic because, at this moment, all prominent CT vendors finally have the opportunity to deliver high-quality spectral imaging with different techniques. Because they can provide these high-quality techniques, they put it to the attention of the radiologists. Nevertheless, spectral CT has been available for over ten years. Still, it takes a lot of time to go from first adaptors to general implementation. It has to fit in the radiologist’s workflow, and they have to see the benefit over time / financial investment. Nowadays, spectral CT can optimise image information and diagnostic accuracy, so we should use it and learn the radiological and medical community because it stays with a bright future in photon-counting CT.
 
What expectations do you have for your own research the coming year?

There are two topics in spectral imaging that have my particular interest: non-contrast brain IQ and contrast volume reduction in low keV reconstructions for vascular CT. But I keep my eyes and mind open for all possible diagnostic and technical evolutions.
 
You are a fellow and treasurer of the European Society of Emergency Radiology (ESER). What is the current scope of the organisation?

The ESER is a sub-society of the European Society of Radiology (ESR). The ESER’s primary goal is to advance and improve the radiologic aspects of emergent patient care and to advance the quality of diagnosis and treatment of acutely ill or injured patients by means of medical imaging and to enhance teaching and research in Emergency Radiology. This training includes new technologies like spectral CT. During this pandemic, it is challenging for younger societies, like ESER, to keep their financial balance because we can’t organise physical meetings. Like all societies, we have to make a difference in the online approach, but this is a big challenge. But we stay optimistic as always.

Meeting with the MedTechLabs researchers, what is your reflection of the centre?

This seminar was my first “physical” encounter with MedtechLabs, and it was an enjoyable experience. From my interests, I was, of course, well informed about the acquisition of Prismatic Sensors by GE Healthcare. I am curious how this cooperation will determine the future of (spectral) CT. Hopefully we are able to meet in person soon and have some more profound discussions!

Birgitta Janerot Sjöberg is Professor of Medical Technology at KI, the Department of Clinical Science, and member of the MedTechLabs Board. She is also one of the forces behind the joint KTH-KI PhD programme in Medical Technology and chairs the Programme Board.

What does it imply that the joint programme is renewed?

It’s really great that those in charge of the doctoral studies at both KI and KTH have chosen to support the existence of the programme. The programme is utterly important to minimise any negative sideffects from Stockholm having “One-faculty universities”, but also to make use of already successful initiatives deriving from the cooperation. The renewal will hopefully mean a boost for both supervisors, alumni, current and former doctoral students, as well as for the discipline as such. Medical Technology is developing fast, and the programme is spread across all the Schools and Institutions at KTH. We believe that an increased collaboration between the disciplines and universities also will favor the attractivity and the development of medical technology in the Stockholm region. That the students get to take with them two different university research cultures is something quite big. The following up of the Alumni is exciting!

What have been the drivers behind the programme and its’ renewal?

There is a strong tradition of collaboration within medical technology in the region. In the 1960s, KI was the first Swedish university to establish a Professor´s chair and Institution in Medical technology – a technological and natural science discipline to solve medical challenges. Early on there was a collaboration established with KTH where professors from KI taught biomedical engineers before medical technology became a separate programme at KTH. KI is still in charge of certain courses at the KTH programme.

When the “twin Professor chairs” within the discipline was established at KI and KTH in 2010, both of us newly appointed professors wanted to enhance and formalise the research collaboration, in order to contribute to the renewal of the discipline and the attractiveness of the region. Together we pursued the idea of a joint degree PhD programme and got support from the then existing School for Technology and Health at KTH and also CLINTEC at KI. Supported by enthusiastic colleagues , this eventually made it possible to start this programme, that leads to a medical doctoral exam from KI and a doctoral exam in biomedical engineering from KTH.

The evaluations were good, but administrative considerations, in combination with a diminished inflow of applications, lead to a pausing of the programme for a review after five years. However, the programme was sought after by both supervisors and students, and both KI and the hospitals saw an increasing demand for medical-technical competence. Now, with simplified and more coordinated administrative processes, the programme is once again ready to accept students.

Birgitta Janerot Sjöberg have been chairperson of the board since the formation and start of the programme, leading the work of two teachers from each university, appointed by the presidents, administrators and student representatives from each academy. Read more about the programme here.

(This interview text earlier had errors due to wrong translations).

Interview with Peder Olofsson. “It is fascinating that in the treatment of inflammation, it can be enough to send a few minute-long electrical pulses per day to achieve a long-term effect."

Peder Olofsson is a physician and researcher at the Department of Medicine, Solna, at Karolinska Institutet, and at MedTechLabs.

His research at MedTechLabs focuses primarily on mapping out the signal transfer between nerves and immune cells at the molecular level, and on finding out which parts of the large vagus nerve that communicate with the immune system.

Read the full article by Felicia Lindberg, first published in Swedish in the magazine Medicinsk Vetenskap No 2/2020.

Clara Hellner has been appointed new Chairperson for MedTechLabs. She entered the position as Director for Research and Innovation in Region Stockholm in June this year. Clara Hellner is an Adjunct Professor at the Institution for Clinical Neuroscience (CNS) at KI.

1. Hi Clara Hellner, congratulations to the new assignment. Why did You accept the position as new chairperson for MedTechLabs?
Thank You! Stockholm will be one of the world’s leading regions within life science, where medical technology is an important part. Being the R&D Director for Region Stockholm it is also natural for me to lead the work of MedTechLabs. The Centre is creating opportunities for researchers at KTH and KI to work close to the clinical operations within the healthcare, thus speeding up the pace for research results to benefit the patients. MedTechLabs also contributes to the regional ecosystem for start-ups and regions attractiveness for global corporations.

2. MedTechLabs is in a state of rapid growth. When and how will the results from the centre reach the patients?
The results from our first research program, Spectral CT-imaging and Endovascular Techniques, has continued to develop. Hopefully employees at the Karolinska University Hospital will soon provide patients suffering from acute stroke with finer diagnostics than ever before and better treatment. The technology is efficiently shared to other hospitals within Region Stockholm through the new online education “Acute stroke treatment within 24 h – decision making with perfusion”. Also, a new endovascular method for heart biopsy has been developed and is currently under clinical assessment in cooperation with the Sahlgrenska University Hospital Transplant Institute. Our second research program, “Breast Cancer Imaging powered by Artificial Intelligence Diagnostics”, has just started and a clinical study is under planning. Here AI and machine learning will be used that hopefully increases the accuracy within image diagnostics of breast cancer in a radical manner.

3. What will be your top priorities for MedTechLabs during the coming Year?
I would like to see that investments such as ScilifeLab and others within the region benefits from the collaboration that MedTechLabs is gradually starting with clinical operations. We are building the first model with Karolinska University Hospital at BioClincium, which then will be ready to spread to our other hospitals. It shall be easy for researcher and companies to conduct clinical studies as part of research projects. The coming year we will create the foundation for this infrastructure within MedTechLabs.

Three quick questions to Peta Sjölander.

1. How has the corona pandemic affected MedTechLabs?
– MedTechLabs carries on as normal – those of us who can are working from home. But the research, education and support activities continue as before.

2. What long term consequences can you see for the centre?
– Of course, no one wishes for this situation, but it has prompted collaboration opportunities across our three programmes. For instance, chest CT-imaging is of great importance in COVID-19 diagnosis, and AI solutions could improve early detection and therefore outcomes.

3. What do you do at MedTechLabs to keep up the energy?
– There is a lot of energy amongst scientists right now, worldwide. MedTechLabs has much to contribute.