LONDON, March 14, 2018 - Volpara Solutions announced today that the PROCAS 2 research project, which is being run within the National Health Service Breast Screening Programme (NHSBSP), will implement VolparaDensity software. This project is the second stage of the Predicting Risk of Cancer at Screening (PROCAS) study, which aims to improve breast cancer risk prediction for women attending routine breast screening.

This PROCAS 2 Programme Grant, “Providing breast cancer risk information as part of national breast cancer screening programme: building an evidence base on benefits and harms to inform a decision to implement,” is led by Professor Gareth Evans, and run by Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust (MFT), with funding from the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) under its Programme Grants for Applied Research funding stream (project reference RP-PG-1214-20016).

In the two year trial, all consenting women screened for breast cancer in the Greater Manchester, East Cheshire and East Lancashire regions will receive breast cancer risk information based on a risk assessment that includes VolparaDensity mammographic density. The trial is a step towards including Volpara technology into routine risk-based screening across the NHSBSP in England — screening two million women annually, it is one of the world’s largest such programs.

The original PROCAS study, led by Professor Gareth Evans, investigated women’s personal breast cancer risk based on breast density, lifestyle, reproductive information and family history. “We are very enthusiastic about the launch of our BC-Predict programme as part of PROCAS2 to allow us to feedback accurate breast cancer risk estimates to women in the North-West who are invited for breast screening under the NHS Breast Screening Programme. Our work with Volpara systems measuring breast mammographic density has been vital in being able to carry this out,” said Prof. Evans.

“PROCAS is a very important study which aims to change the way breast screening is approached in the UK and globally, and will ensure women better understand their risk and that high-risk patients are offered appropriate screening and prevention options,” said Dr Ralph Highnam, CEO of Volpara Solutions. “To be selected as the tool of choice for measurement of breast density is an important validation of our work. It is hoped that breast density measurement, using VolparaDensity software, will become a routine part of screening in the NHSBSP.”

About Volpara Solutions

Founded with the goal of helping radiologists give women the most accurate information possible regarding their breast health, Volpara Solutions is the wholly owned sales and marketing arm of Volpara Health Technologies Limited of New Zealand. Available in most markets where breast cancer screening is commonplace, VolparaDensity provides an objective volumetric measure of breast density from both digital mammography and tomosynthesis data. VolparaEnterprise is a suite of quantitative breast imaging tools for personalized measurements of density, patient-specific x-ray dose, breast compression, breast positioning and other factors designed to provide critical insight for breast imaging workflow.

About the UK National Institute for Health Research (NIHR):

Established by the Department of Health, the NIHR aims to improve the health and wealth of the nation through research by:

• funding high quality research to improve health
• training and supporting health researchers
• providing world-class research facilities
• working with the life sciences industry and charities to benefit all
• involving patients and the public at every step

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