Medical imaging scanners are being redesigned to work smarter, not just faster or sharper, by weaving together artificial intelligence, new molecular probes, and cheaper hardware into a single, integrated approach. The problem is that medical imaging has traditionally been developed in silos—contrast agents are designed separately from image reconstruction, which is handled apart from clinical analysis. This fragmentation limits how much information can be extracted from a scan and slows the translation of new techniques into routine care. The new Centre for Doctoral Training at King’s College London and Imperial College London aims to break down these barriers by training researchers who can work across all these disciplines simultaneously. If successful, this programme will produce a generation of scientists who can build “smart” imaging systems that are more affordable, more portable, and more informative than today’s machines. That could mean cheaper scanners for NHS hospitals, real-time imaging during surgery, or molecular probes that detect disease earlier. It could also make advanced diagnostics accessible in low-resource settings, improving healthcare equity. The research is applied and training-focused, with direct implications for how medical imaging is developed and deployed in the coming decade.
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Medical imaging has made major contributions to healthcare, by providing noninvasive diagnostics, guidance, and unparalleled monitoring of treatment and understanding of disease. A suite of multimodal imaging modalities is nowadays available, and scanner hardware technology continues to advance, with high-field, hybrid, real-time and hand-held imaging further pushing on technological boundaries; furthermore, new developments of contrast agents and radioactive tracers open exciting new avenues in designing more targeted molecular imaging probes. Conventionally, the individual imaging components of probes and contrast mechanisms, acquisition and reconstruction, and analysis and interpretation are addressed separately. This however, is creating unnecessary silos between otherwise highly synergistic disciplines, which our current EPSRC CDT in Medical Imaging at King's College London and Imperial College London has already started to successfully challenge. Our new CDT will push this even further by bridging the different imaging disciplines and clinical applications, with the interdisciplinary research based on complementary collaborations and new research directions that would not have been possible five years ago. Through a comprehensive, integrated training programme in Smart Medical Imaging we will train the next generation of medical imaging researchers that is needed to reach the full potential of medical imaging through so-called "smart" imaging technologies. To achieve this ambitious goal we have developed four new Scientific Themes which are synergistically interlinked: AI-enabled Imaging, Smart Imaging Probes, Emerging Imaging and Affordable Imaging. This is complemented by a dedicated 1+3 training programme, with a new MRes in Healthcare Technologies at King's as the foundation year, strong industry links in form of industry placements, careers mentoring and workshops, entrepreneurship training, and opportunities in engaging with international training programmes and academic labs to become part of a wider cohort. Cohort building, Responsible Research & Innovation, Equality, Diversity & Inclusion, and Public Engagement will be firmly embedded in this programme. Students graduating from this CDT will have acquired a broad set of scientific and transferable skills that will enable them to work across the different medical imaging sub-disciplines, gaining a high employability over wider sectors.
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