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Radiology Turnaround Slows, AI Speeds CT Worklists, and MRI Workflow
August 6, 2026
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Together with
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“With radiologists already in short supply amidst rising imaging utilization, our results amplify existing concerns about the ability of the current and future radiologist workforce to provide patients with timely results without a solution to dampen growing imaging demand.”
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Gregory Nicola, MD, co-author of a new study on growing radiology turnaround times.
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Radiology organizations are looking to replace legacy reporting solutions with new technology that will serve as their operational foundation for years to come. Join The Imaging Wire and Microsoft on Monday, August 24, at 12:00 PM ET for an exclusive customer-led webinar on radiology reporting featuring leaders from University of Utah Health and Intermountain Health.
Meanwhile, we’re pleased to announce the next member of the Insight Links family – The BioWire, our newest publication covering the fast-growing life sciences industry! The BioWire will deliver breaking life science news in the same twice-weekly format you’ve grown to love with The Imaging Wire, Cardiac Wire, and Digital Health Wire. Sign up today! – Brian Casey, Managing Editor
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Radiologists are taking longer to interpret medical images than they did 10 years ago … and it’s a problem that appears to be getting worse. New data from the ACR’s Neiman HPI group, published in JACR, show that report turnaround times rose 27% between 2023 and 2024.
Report turnaround time (commonly referred to as TAT) is a closely watched barometer of radiologist productivity, and longer TAT could indicate radiologists are struggling to keep up with growing imaging volumes.
- Another Neiman HPI study on TAT released earlier this year discovered a “hockey stick” effect, with turnaround times jumping sharply starting in 2022.
But that study only tracked TAT through 2023. Meanwhile, anecdotal reports have surfaced of a “rapid increase” in turnaround times in late 2024.
- So the updated research adds more recent data, analyzing newly available Medicare fee-for-service claims from 2024.
Researchers analyzed data from 2.9M office and hospital outpatient claims from 2014 to 2024, finding that TAT…
- Grew just 14% in seven years from 2014 to 2021 (0.091 to 0.104 days).
- But then rose at double-digit annual rates in 2023 (60%) and 2024 (27%).
- Reached 0.251 days by the end of 2024, a 177% increase over 10 years.
- Increased at different rates by modality over the 10-year period, including CT (381%), MRI (278%), ultrasound (267%), and X-ray (126%).
Why did TAT growth decelerate in 2024 over the year before? The Neiman HPI authors weren’t sure, but they said practice leaders may have taken steps to meet higher demand, like moonlighting and reactivating retired staff.
- But these aren’t long-term measures that can meet the mismatch between supply and demand, suggesting instead that “the radiology workforce may be operating at or near maximum capacity.”
The Takeaway
The new data on slower radiology report turnaround times confirm fears that radiologists are struggling under rising imaging volumes and a stagnant workforce. While slower TAT growth in 2024 is a bit of a silver lining, it does little to hide the growing storm clouds on the horizon.
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Integrating Clinical Data with AI Echocardiography
Cardiac amyloidosis is an underdiagnosed yet treatable cause of heart failure in which timely diagnosis is essential to access life-prolonging therapies. Read this paper to learn how AI echo from Us2.ai can help clinicians make an early diagnosis.
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Accelerate Enterprise Imaging in the Cloud
It’s more than a traditional VNA. Discover how Merge Imaging Suite VNA v26.0 provides robust vendor-neutral image archiving with the scalability and security of Microsoft Azure.
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Opportunistic Detection of CAC and Pulmonary Nodules
Achieve a newfound certainty of search for thoracic CT when using ClearRead CT from Riverain Technologies. It’s a natural addition for opportunistic CAC scoring and nodule detection, or as part of a CT lung cancer screening program.
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- AI Speeds CT Workslists: One way to speed up radiology workflow could be to use AI to prioritize the worklist. Writing in Radiology: Artificial Intelligence, Stanford University researchers described their algorithm that used ChatGPT-4 to analyze radiology narrative reports and prioritize studies that had clinically actionable findings. Compared to a first-in-first-out (FIFO) queue, the AI-based workflow, when applied to 20.8k emergency CT exams, reduced median wait times for actionable findings by 11 minutes, and the proportion of actionable findings obtained in one hour rose (from 48% to 57%).
- Improved MRI Workflow: Meanwhile, the key to better MRI workflow could be sitting right in front of you. In a new paper in Clinical Imaging, researchers performed a literature review of recent studies on MRI operational efficiency, finding that “a substantial proportion of scanner time is spent on non-imaging activities,” like patient prep and non-standard scanning protocols. They found that a package of improvements like dockable tables and better staff training could produce revenue gains of 40% to 60% per MRI scanner and save $780k per year.
- EHR Review Finds LDCT Candidates: Reviewing the EHR data of people who haven’t smoked long enough to be eligible for low-dose CT lung cancer screening could reveal that some actually meet screening criteria. In a new study in CHEST, primary care providers reviewed EHR data for 3.8k people with smoking histories. Those who got the reviews and were classified as highly likely to qualify were nearly 4X more likely to have an LDCT scan ordered (12.1% vs. 3.1%).
- 4DMedical Partners with RevealDx: 4DMedical partnered with RevealDx in an alliance designed to improve lung cancer diagnosis – and that includes 4DMedical investing $3.4M in RevealDx. RevealDx offers the RevealAI-Lung algorithm for characterizing incidental lung nodules, and 4DMedical will distribute the software in the U.S., Europe, Australia, and New Zealand. The algorithm complements 4DMedical’s own offerings, like its CT:VQ software for demonstrating lung function from CT scans.
- Imaging Surveillance for Pancreatic Cancer: Rather than invasive surgery, imaging can be used to monitor patients with pancreatic cystic neoplasms, which can be benign, precancerous, or cancerous. In a new paper in JAMA Network Open, researchers tracked 13.3k people with neoplasms, finding that from 2006 to 2022, surgery rates fell while use of CT and MRI grew. But there was no statistically significant change in survival or incidence of early- or late-stage pancreatic cancer over the study period, underscoring limitations of imaging-based risk stratification.
- Radiopharmaceutical Consolidation: The long-rumored combination of two of the radiopharmaceutical sector’s largest players is finally coming to fruition. Curium and Lantheus announced an agreement worth up to $8B in which Curium will acquire all Lantheus shares. The combined company will offer a broad range of diagnostic and therapeutic radiopharmaceuticals, with strong positions in PET, theranostics, and the Definity ultrasound contrast agent. It’s the biggest acquisition yet for Curium, which was formed in 2017 by venture capital firm CapVest and got its start operating PET radiopharmacies.
- BWX Divests Medical Isotope Business: BWX Technologies this week announced the sale of its medical isotope business to Nordic Capital for up to $800M. BWXT develops and manufactures radioisotopes primarily for diagnostic and therapeutic applications, such as iodine-123 for neurology, oncology, and cardiology uses, and actinium-225 for cancer treatment. BWXT acquired the business – which at one time was part of Nordion – in 2018 from Sotera. BWXT said it had tripled the unit’s revenues since then and would retain a minority stake in the company.
- A Nuclear Imaging Agent Returns: Curium is reintroducing the nuclear cardiology radiopharmaceutical thallium-201 (Tl-201) to the U.S. for the first time since production ceased in 2022. The company said the reintroduction restores access to an important myocardial perfusion test and provides an option for scenarios like cardiac viability testing where PET or MRI may be unavailable or impractical. Use of thallium-201 steadily declined from 2010 to 2021 as cardiology SPECT practices shifted to technetium-99m.
- Fibroids Factor Into Ultrasound Disparities: Black women face transvaginal ultrasound completion rates 13 percentage points lower than white women (76% vs. 89%). A JAMA Network Open study among 1.8k women found that this disparity disappeared when women with fibroids were excluded from analysis, suggesting that these noncancerous tumors obstruct tissue visualization, similar to the effect of dense breasts in mammography. The authors emphasized that transvaginal scans must be treated as incomplete, not negative, to maximize the detection of neoplasia and minimize endometrial cancer’s unequal burden on Black women.
- GE Adds Compact Ultrasound Scanners: GE HealthCare added two new offerings to its Logiq e family of compact ultrasound scanners. The Logiq e product line is designed to offer the functionality and image quality of cart-based scanners in a compact, laptop-sized package. The new systems include Logiq e X, a premium offering that includes AI-powered tools, advanced imaging functionality, and workflow features, while Logiq e S is a more affordable system that offers essential ultrasound applications.
- Function’s Fresh $450M: Function brought in nearly half a billion in growth funding to extend the lives of those who use the longevity health platform. The funding boost comes on the heels of two major acquisitions, including whole-body MRI provider Ezra and Getlabs’ DIY blood draw service. Despite debates over the ethics of selling costly, comprehensive scans to healthy people, investor interest is there: The market has been booming, as evidenced by companies like Neko Health, which recently reeled in a $700M unicorn funding round.
- Imai to Lead Canon Medical USA: Longtime Canon Medical Systems USA executive Tsuneo “Neo” Imai was named president and CEO of the business, succeeding Hisashi Tachizaki. Imai has over 40 years of experience working for Canon in the healthcare industry, and most recently was VP of strategic partnerships and collaboration at Canon Healthcare USA, the Cleveland-based health technology subsidiary the company launched in 2023.
- Siemens Healthineers Taps Americas Chief: Siemens Healthineers announced a new leader of its Americas division, tapping João Seabra to head the business starting October 1, succeeding John Kowal. Seabra joined Siemens in 2001 and led the company’s Western Europe and West Africa regions from 2015 to 2018. Most recently, he helmed Siemens’ Enterprise Services operations, where he quadrupled the division’s revenue over the past eight years.
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KailoFlow Replaces the Patchwork
KailoFlow from Kailo Medical gives you one platform from digital patient intake to final structured report, with automated measurement transfer, built-in TI-RADS and BI-RADS calculations, and pre-drafted reporting across any device, any site.
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More than an Image. The Big Picture
AGFA HealthCare understands that striking the critical balance between clinical efficiency and quality delivery of patient care starts with the clinician experience. Learn how their Enterprise Imaging platform makes the complex simple.
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Elevating Outpatient Imaging in Texas
River Oaks MRI & Diagnostic in Texas was founded on a simple but powerful idea: to bring high-quality, accessible imaging to the local community. Learn how they turned to United Imaging to help realize their vision.
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- Preventing Burnout in Mid-Career Radiologists: Navigating the mid-career stage in radiology presents unique challenges and growth opportunities for radiologists reaching the 10- to 20-year mark. Check out these tips from Medality for thriving in the middle years of your professional journey.
- Top Health Systems Are Providing Patient-Friendly Reports: Scanslated is the digital patient experience platform trusted at scale by Duke Health, Lumexa Imaging, and other patient-centric healthcare providers. Find out how Scanslated can work for you today.
- Advancing Enterprise Imaging With IntelePACS: Attend this Lunch & Learn session from Intelerad on Tuesday, August 11, from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. EDT to learn how IntelePACS helps radiology groups, hospitals, and health systems simplify imaging workflows through a scalable, enterprise-ready platform.
- A Breakthrough in Imaging Data Standardization: Enlitic’s Ensight 2.2 is a breakthrough in imaging data standardization that gives health systems a clearer, more detailed understanding of imaging data, accelerating the path from implementation to impact. Find out what it can do for you today.
- Next-Generation DICOM SR Workflow Engine Messaging: The accelerating adoption of AI-powered radiology reporting has propelled replacement of legacy speech recognition integration technology. Discover how Altamont Software’s Passport SR can help you manage the shift with a modern DICOM SR engine.
- Experience the Breakthrough in 3T MRI Innovation: Philips empowers you to advance clinical and diagnostic confidence with cutting-edge 3T MRI technology to deliver precision imaging for every patient, every exam, every day. Learn more today.
- One Viewer for All: Achieve ultrafast image interpretation with greater efficiency and precision with Visage 7 from Visage Imaging. Visage’s one-viewer philosophy enables all end users – from radiologists to clinicians – to access powerful tools based on clinical need.
- Considering a Reporting Transition? Get practical change management strategies and insights from radiology leaders who recently transitioned their reporting solutions. Access the webinar.
- Transforming Radiography with Automation Intelligence: FDR Visionary Suite from Fujifilm Healthcare Americas is an innovative digital radiography solution designed to enhance the experience for both technologists and patients. It delivers impressive speed and repeatability for efficient, faster workflow, with automated positioning and optional, fully automated advanced applications.
- Unlock Next-Level Diagnostic Possibilities: Photonova Spectra from GE HealthCare is designed to realize the full potential of photon-counting CT in oncology, cardiology, neurology, and more. Learn more about the difference its Deep Silicon technology makes on this page.
- Leadership in Life Sciences: Quibim is committed to accelerating its development within the life sciences sector and strengthening collaborations with leading pharmaceutical companies. Learn about recent leadership developments that are moving the company forward.
- The World’s Happiest Customers – 13 Straight Years: Sectra continues to top the charts when it comes to customer satisfaction. The company recently won seven Best in KLAS awards, including the 13th straight for its Sectra PACS enterprise imaging solution. Find out why on this page.
- Radiology Automation Simplified: CARPL is an enterprise-grade radiology AI validation and deployment platform with 250+ AI applications across 85+ AI vendors that empowers healthcare providers to access, assess, and securely integrate imaging AI in their practice. Book a demo today.
- How to Choose Between Tableside and Remote Fluoroscopy: Need help deciding whether tableside or universal remote fluoroscopy is right for you? This whitepaper from Siemens Healthineers may be able to put things in perspective.
- The Modern Way to Send and Receive Medical Images: Medicom Connect enables you to automate clinical image exchange across your healthcare ecosystem with workflows that automatically find, retrieve, and deliver images directly to the point of care, improving access and care coordination. Learn more about Medicom’s solutions today.
- The Workstation of the Future: A dedicated team of radiologists shapes every aspect of the functionality and design of MosaicOS from Mosaic Clinical Technologies. Learn how every feature was built to eliminate distractions, amplify focus, and enhance the radiologist experience.
- What If the Biggest Problem Facing Your Radiology Practice Isn’t Your PACS? While most organizations continue evaluating imaging systems, the operational challenges that drive burnout, staffing shortages, and slower turnaround times continue to grow. Discover why leading radiology groups are shifting their focus from imaging to operational transformation.
- How AI Is Redefining Data Migration: Enlitic’s Migratek data migration services – combined with AI-enabled ENDEX data standardization – is changing the game for data migration projects. Discover how it can benefit you in this article.
- Adding AI Automation to Radiology Reporting: Reporting Pro from DeepHealth is a next-generation AI-powered solution designed to transform the way radiologists generate clinical reports and findings. Discover how it can transform your practice.
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