MACSI at the department of Mathematics and Statistics at the University of Limerick invites you to a seminar
Date: Friday, March 6, 2020, Room A1-051 at 14.00
(Please note the unusual time and room number)
Speaker: Prof. Finbarr O’ Sullivan (School of Mathematical Sciences, U.C.C.)
Title: Kinetic Analysis and Metabolic Mapping of Dynamic Imaging Studies with PET and MR.
Abstract: Dynamic volumetric imaging of tissue following the injection of a positron emission tomography (PET) radio-tracer or magnetic resonance (MR) paramagnetic agent, has the potential to provide valuable information about tissue physiology and metabolism. Such techniques are used in a number of basic research settings and over the past decades in the clinical management of certain groups of cancer patients. The talk gives an overview of the mathematical basis of these techniques and the role of parametric and non-parametric modelling in the analysis of the resulting image datasets. A comprehensive representation of the imaging data gives an opportunity to apply model-based bootstrapping for assessment of uncertainties in derived biomarkers. This is illustrated by application to a PET blood flow- metabolism mismatch study in a breast cancer patient. The study involves injections of O-15 H2O and F-18 FDG. The bootstrap requires analysis of many (several hundred) sets of the simulated 4-D datasets in order to obtain a series of simulated 4- D parametric images. The simulated parametric images are used to directly evaluate statistical uncertainties (standard errors) in derived imaging biomarkers. Some theoretical analysis of the estimation process is also developed. This work supports the use of estimation techniques that avoid the computation burden of likelihood. In the context of PET, a series of simple numerical simulations with dynamic FDG and dynamic H2O studies, shows that the hybrid estimation approach achieves high efficiency over a range of realistic doses.
{Work is supported by the National Cancer Institute (US) and Science Foundation Ireland.}
Further Information: If you have any questions regarding this seminar, please direct them to Romina Gaburro (061 2131930, email romina.gaburro@ul.ie or Clifford Nolan (061 202766), clifford.nolan@ul.ie).
Supported by Science Foundation Ireland funding, MACSI - the Mathematics Applications Consortium for Science and Industry (www.macsi.ul.ie), centred at the University of Limerick, is dedicated to the mathematical modelling and solution of problems which arise in science, engineering and industry in Ireland.
