The Future of Radiology

Anand Prabhakar, MD, MBA, Chair, Department of Radiology

Patients rely on NWH for more than 270,000 radiology exams per year. Devoted to the highest standard of care and fueled by philanthropy, our Department of Radiology team continues to break new ground.

When it comes to radiology, "We aim to push the limits of what we can do here for our patients," says Anand Prabhakar, MD, MBA, the department's chair.

Since joining Newton-Wellesley in 2019, the forward-thinking radiologist has led a transformation in both the team and technology to meet the growing demands for complex care.

From the start, he's felt fortunate to have great relationships with clinicians across the hospital. "We're all working together to provide exceptional patient care," he says.

Within radiology, "the spirit is innovation, but the culture is service," he reflects. "The culture is quality and safety. The culture is collaboration."

For patients across the area NWH brings world-class care closer to home in many ways. Dr. Prabhakar's ongoing goal for radiology: to deliver services at a level equivalent to an academic medical center with the comfort and convenience of a community hospital.

From his perspective, "we can do 99 percent of what they do downtown right here," he says. "By providing that quality of work here, it gives patients back time."

Success story of sub specialization

With the growing complexity of cases that NWH sees, the Department of Radiology has had to evolve. "This has become a very technically complex hospital," reflects Dr. Prabhakar. One of the advances has been the increase in subspecialists.

In the past, NWH took a generalist approach to radiology. The department now relies on radiology subspecialists who have completed extra years of training to become experts in a focused area of radiology such as abdomen, chest, or cardiovascular imaging. Given the pace of change and complexity in the field, "it's no longer feasible to keep up with everything from head to toe," he says.

The Manton Breast Imaging Center at NWH offers a case in point, adds Pragya Dang, MD. Fellowship trained at Massachusetts General Hospital, she joined Dr. Prabhakar's team in 2019 at NWH to build on the center's expertise. Now, "our team is completely made up of fellowship-trained subspecialists."

To Dr. Prabhakar, "being able to achieve that across the department has been one of our success stories."

Highest standard of breast imaging

According to the American Cancer Society, the five-year survival rate of breast cancer is 99 percent when the disease is detected early, and in a localized stage. The evolution of breast imaging has helped to make that possible, Dr. Dang explains.

New technology has meant higher resolution images and improved detection. Early detection not only helps with saving lives but results in less aggressive treatment and surgery for patients.

Thanks to philanthropic support, the Breast Imaging Center has recently updated all of its equipment to offer patients the highest standard of 3D mammography. Now, radiologists have image data with improved clarity, contrast, and detail. Better images reduce the need for patients to return for repeat scans, which minimizes their anxiety. The new technology improves patient comfort by reducing the time of compression and exposure and decreasing the already low dose of radiation by almost half.

Looking ahead, Dr. Dang trusts that AI will play an even larger role as it evolves. By helping to determine those at a higher risk for breast cancer and who would benefit from additional screening, "it will make us better radiologists," she believes.

While she's excited by the continual advances, she always cherishes the patient-facing dimension of her role. "It's very gratifying to help make a difference in women's lives," she reflects.

Introducing the Cardiac CT Scanner

In February 2023, again thanks in large part to philanthropy, radiology at NWH took a significant leap forward when our new Cardiac Computed Tomography (CT) scanner came online. With its addition, Newton-Wellesley became the first community hospital across Mass General Brigham to have the technology as part of an emerging hub-and-spoke model, led by Massachusetts General Hospital.

Consistency as innovation

Brian Ghoshhajra, MD, MBA, sees NWH’s top-of-the-line cardiac CT scanner as a huge leap forward.

Among all the advances, "consistency and standardization is an undervalued innovation," Dr. Prabhakar believes.

Considering all facets of radiology, the department does more than 270,000 exams a year at Newton-Wellesley. "There's a patient behind every single one of those," he notes. "It's not just taking an image, it's the whole experience."

"My goal is always to provide a consistent interpretation and experience 24/7," he reflects. "The only way to do that is to have a bigger scale—and to have partners to help make that scale possible."

In Newton-Wellesley's case, he sees the department as fortunate to have such strong relationships with Mass General and other institutions across the system to execute that. The enterprise model connects NWH to a wider team of 300-plus radiologists across Mass General Brigham.

Obsessed with doing things better

Looking to the future, Dr. Prabhakar sees so much ahead, citing the promising field of "theranostics" as just one example. Its name reflects its combination of two approaches—therapeutics and diagnostics.

For patients with prostate and other cancers, the breakthrough makes it possible to image and selectively treat their disease simultaneously.

At NWH, this advanced capability already exists, he proudly adds.

As one of the most technically oriented fields in the entire hospital, radiology is often on the cutting edge. "When technology creates paradigm shifts in healthcare, it's often applied in radiology first," Dr. Prabhakar says. "And that's what we're experiencing now."

He's excited that continual investments have enhanced technology and access, often made possible by philanthropy. "My dream would be to have an endowment for radiology that is lasting and that we can continue to draw from."

"I've always been obsessed with doing things better, and that's how we achieve greatness," Dr. Prabhakar reflects. It's a team effort, and the extraordinary team of radiologists and radiology staff is the backbone.

"We work together in the mission of providing excellent patient care and excellent service," he concludes. "And we continue to innovate."