Invicro LLC, is working with Microsoft to create a free repository of COVID-19 diagnostic CT and X-ray datasets to facilitate understanding and treating this global threat. The repository uses the advanced technologies in Invicro’s iPACS® and the Microsoft Azure cloud platform, offering the required security, privacy, and compute power. This critical mission invites and strongly encourages researchers worldwide to access the data and to contribute COVID-19 images and clinical data.
Early partner in this effort includes Johns Hopkins University (USA) and other leading medical institutions are emerging. Partnership with Johns Hopkins would include developing advanced algorithms for feature detection of pulmonary pathology in preclinical models. In addition, the World Molecular Imaging Society will provide access to its extensive network to promote involvement and encourage alignment with the mission.
“First and foremost, on behalf of all of Invicro, our thoughts go out to those who have succumbed to this fatal pandemic and their loved ones, and our appreciation and admiration goes out to all the healthcare providers and first responders,” stated Dr Matthew Silva, Chief Executive Officer of Invicro. “Invicro is honored to partner with Microsoft, a global leader in computing systems, and major medical institutions to help phenotype and eradicate COVID-19.”
As research evolves daily to uncover treatments for this serious disease, scientists and physicians have turned to CT and X-ray biomarkers to better understand COVID-19 disease presentation, progression, and response to therapy. However, there are limited resources for researchers and data scientists to advance analytical tools specific to the presentation and progression of COVID-19. This growing database is intended to address this critical bottleneck.
“COVID-19 has united so many organizations to fight for a common cause,” said Heather Jordan Cartwright, GM, Microsoft Health. “The images and metadata being captured during this medical pandemic are essential for research. Microsoft is partnering with Invicro and other healthcare leaders to enable a highly secure and private data platform that can rise to the challenge of this global initiative.”
The “COVID iPACS Data Repository” uses Invicro’s iPACS® web-based data management platform and is hosted on Azure. The system will offer automated anonymization and quality control of all incoming data as well as be compliant with GDPR, EU Data Privacy Shield to ensure patient privacy and data protection standards are in line with regulatory guidelines. The database can be accessed at https://covid19.ipacs.invicro.com/ Interested researchers whom wish to participate as a data contributor and/or data receiver should contact Invicro via covid19research@invicro.com.
“It is more critical than ever to commit to science and research for the welfare of human life,” commented Kiyotaka Fujii, President of Konica Minolta Global Healthcare and Chairman & CEO of Konica Minolta Precision Medicine. “The strength of imaging to provide detailed visualization, characterization, and quantification of pathological processes combined with AI-analysis from CT and X-ray data sets can improve diagnosis as well as treatment planning and will accelerate discovery and development of drug treatments for COVID-19. We are proud to work with Microsoft to offer this service.”