Cell Chip Tackles Medical Imaging

Scientists have exploited parallel computer architecture and memory bandwidth to significantly speed up the processing of three-dimensional (3D) medical images.

This new development considerably supports image registration--the computer-enhanced alignment of two medical images obtained at different dates or by using different imaging devices, in three-dimensional space. With the images correctly aligned over one another, a radiologist can more effectively detect structural changes such as the growth or shrinkage of tumors.

The collaboration‘s findings, by researchers from the Mayo Clinic (Rochester, MN, USA) and IBM (Armonk, NY, USA), were presented at the IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) International Symposium on Biomedical Imaging in Washington, DC, USA, April 12-15, 2007.

Through porting and optimization of Mayo Clinic's Image Registration Application on the IBM BladeCenter QS20 Cell Blade, the application produced image results 50 times faster than the application running on a conventional processor configuration.

One way medical images are being improved is by using visual images from more than one source--magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computed tomography (CT) scans, for example. The generation of computer-enhanced images from multiple sources must start with the accurate alignment of the visual data. When three dimensions and millions of pixels are involved, the task becomes exponentially complicated. Within this scope, the need for higher processing speeds is vital.

For this imaging project, Mayo Clinic and IBM utilized 98 sets of images and ran the optimized registration application on the IBM BladeCenter QS20, in comparison with running the original application on a typical processor configuration. The application running on a typical processor configuration completed the registration of all 98 sets of images in about seven hours. The team adapted a mutual-information-based 3D linear registration algorithm application optimized for Cell Broadband Engine (Cell/BE) and completed the registration for all 98 sets of images in just 516 seconds, with no registration taking more than 20 seconds.

By running the application faster, a clinician will be able to make a faster diagnosis and promptly begin appropriate treatments for patients. "This is all about taking technology innovation, collaborating with our customers, and applying it to help them directly benefit their patients,” said Shahrokh Daijavad, Next Generation Computing, Systems, and Technology, IBM.


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