High Country continues to attract and blend experts from academia and industry, with leaders in medical specialties, the regulatory agencies and health care researchers in an informal setting to facilitate dialog and an exchange of ideas. The meeting consists of six to seven hours of structured sessions per day (8 sessions total). In between sessions, roundtable discussions will be held and there are ample opportunities for independent meetings and networking. The 2024 meeting, with anticipated attendance of 100 participants, promises to open avenues and opportunities of collaboration on a variety of issues important to the nuclear medicine and molecular imaging community while allowing interaction and networking.
Over the course of four days, the High Country Nuclear Medicine Conference will offer 27 hours of content. No CE Credit will be offered at the 2024 Conference. The 2024 Conference will only be held in-person.
2024 Program
*All times are Mountain Time. Schedule Subject to Change.
Saturday, March 2, 2024
6:30 AM – 7:00 AM Breakfast with Vendors
7:00 AM – 9:30 AM Session: Breast Imaging
Session Chair: Bital Savir-Baruch, MD, FACNM
Co-Chair: Kevin Donohoe, MD
Session Topics:
Guiding Treatment: The Precision of Lymphoscintigraphy in Breast Cancer
Speaker: Kevin Donohoe, MD
Shaping Tomorrow’s Diagnosis: Molecular Breast Imaging (MBI) in Early Breast Cancer Detection
Speaker: Bital Savir-Baruch, MD, FACNM
Improving Care: FES-PET’s Essential Role in Improving the Diagnosis and Management of Metastatic Breast Cancer
Speaker: Ephraim Parent, MD, PhD
Case-based presentation and expert panel discussion
Speaker: Panel Discussion
1:00 PM – 3:00 PM Roundtable: Advanced, Inodine-Refactory Thyroid Cancer
Lead: Michael Wissmeyer, MD, PhD
4:00 PM – 7:30 PM Session: Cardiology
Session Chair: Robert Miller, MD
Co-Chair: Piotr Slomka, PhD
This session will review recent advancements in nuclear cardiology. The session will start with an overview of the emerging role for SPECT and PET in diagnosis of cardiac amyloidosis. The session will then highlight advancements in myocardial perfusion imaging including cardiac applications of hybrid imaging, state-of-the-art quantification methods, and clinical applications of artificial intelligence.
Session Topics:
Imaging Cardiac Amyloidosis: SPECT and PET
Speaker: Sarah Cuddy, MD
Hybrid Imaging for myocardial perfusion
Speaker: Rob Miller, MD
Myocardial Blood Flow Quantification: Implications for Coronary Microvascular Disease
Speaker: Panithaya Chareonthaitawee, M.D.
Novel Clinical Applications of Artificial Intelligence for Nuclear Cardiology
Speaker: Piotr Slomka, PhD
Sunday, March 3, 2024
6:30 AM – 7:00 AM Breakfast with Vendors
7:00 AM – 9:30 AM Session: Alphatherapy
Session Chair: Roy Brown, MBA
Co-Chair: Andreas Kjaer, MD, PhD, DMSc, MBA
Session Topics:
Alpha and Beta emitters: precision vs area bombing
Speaker: Edward O’Neill, PhD
Astatine-211: Ready for prime time?
Speaker: Yutian Feng, PhD
A Pioneering Effort in Simultaneous Fr-221/Bi-213 Imaging: To Boldly Quantify as Never Before… Now What?
Speaker: Eileen Sneeden, PhD
Japanese efforts for targeted radionuclide therapy using 211At: Luck or Pluck?
Speaker: Kohshin Washiyama, Ph.D.
1:00 PM – 3:00 PM Roundtable: FAPI-imaging and Therapy: Availability and reimbursement
Lead: Michael Wissmeyer, MD, PhD
5:00 PM – 7:00 PM Hal O’Brien Rising Star Session
Session Chair: Piotr Slomka, PhD
Session Topics:
Using Bioinformatic Analyses to Enhance the Therapeutic Effect of Receptor Radionuclide Therapy in Neuroendocrine Tumors
Speaker: Pedram Heidari, MD
PET imaging in dementia
Speaker: Mary Ellen Koran, MD, Ph.D.
7:00 PM – 9:00 PM Sunday Night Dinner & Hal O’Brien Rising Star Award Ceremony. Open to all in-person attendees with meeting registration. Additional tickets available for guests.
Monday, March 4, 2024
6:30 AM – 7:00 AM Breakfast with Vendors
7:00 AM – 9:30 AM Session: Regulatory
2023 saw mostly executive branch activity and limited legislative action related to healthcare at the U.S. Federal level. The Biden Administration pressed forward in implementing the drug pricing provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) while legal challenges moved slowly through the courts. Political infighting in the U.S. House of Representatives resulted in very few bills enacted, though committee hearings indicated interest in increasing healthcare cost transparency and limiting Pharmacy Benefit Managers practices. However, the Facilitating Innovative Nuclear Diagnostics Act (FIND) was re-introduced in both the House and Senate early in the new Congressional session, gained significant numbers of co-sponsors, and was included in a House healthcare hearing. Also significant for nuclear medicine, CMS removed coverage limitations for PET beta amyloid imaging agents, and during rulemaking requested comments on options to unpackage diagnostic radiopharmaceuticals in the Hospital Outpatient setting. This session will provide updates regarding such ongoing legislative and regulatory changes impacting the nuclear medicine sector.
Session Chair: Ira Goldman
Co-Chair: Denise Merlino
Session Topics:
Legislative Developments related to MACRA, Physician payments, etc.
Speaker: Kathy Flood
CMS coverage policy changes for beta amyloid imaging and payment policy changes(?) for diagnostic
radiopharmaceuticals
Speaker: Denise Merlino
FIND Act
Speaker: Ira Goldman
Update on NRC rule-making for medical radioisotopes (esp. amendments to patient release guidelines)
Speaker: Chris Einberg
1:00 PM – 3:00 PM Roundtable: Legislative
Lead: Cathy Cutler
4:00 PM- 7:30 PM Session: Neurology
2024 will be a pivotal year for neuroimaging degenerative cognitive diseases. This year amyloid PET tracers are approved and reimbursed and one Alzheimer disease modifying therapy is approved and reimbursed. The Neurology session will discuss the impact of these changes on nuclear medicine and radiology. In addition there are new data for existing research tracers in no-AD degenerative diseases (Progressive Supranuclear Palsy, and Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy) and new tracers being developed that will be discussed.
Session Chair: Andrew Stephens, MD, PhD
Co-Chair: Neil Vasdev, PhD
Session Topics:
New tau tracers for primary 4R tauopathies
Speaker: Neil Vasdev, PhD
Clinical Applications of neuroinflammatory imaging agents
Speaker: Keenan Walker, PhD
The Impact of anti-amyloid AD therapies on nuclear medicine and radiology
Speaker: Satoshi Minoshima, MD, PhD
Beyond amyloid PET; clinical utility of tau PET imaging
Speaker: Renaud La Joie, PhD
Imaging Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy
Speaker: Mike Alosco, PhD
Tuesday, March 5, 2024
6:30 AM – 7:00 AM Breakfast with Vendors
7:00 AM – 9:30 AM Session: Instrumentation
Technology trends and updates: a brief look at 2023 science and technology , with examples from the IEEE RTSD and MIC 2023 to showcase trends in NM instrumentation.
Session Chair: Hans Vija
Co-Chair: Michael Wissmeyer, MD, PhD
Session Topics:
Whole Body PET/CT: Challenges and opportunities
Speaker: Clemens Mingels, MD
Full ring SPECT/CT: Will it replace conventional gamma cameras and SPECT/CT systems?
Speaker: Benjamin Auer, PhD
PET/MRI in pediatrics
Speaker: Helen Nadel, MD, FRCPC, ABR, ABNM, FACNM, FSNMMI
Highlights from the IEEE Meeting
Speaker: Hans Vija
1:00 PM – 3:00 PM Roundtable: Instrumentation & Theranostics
Lead: Michael Wissmeyer, MD, PhD & Andreas Kjaer, MD, PhD
4:00 PM- 7:30 PM Session: Theranostics
Session Chair: Andreas Kjaer, MD, PhD
The concept of radiopharmaceutical theranostics has gained momentum in recent years. Targeted radionuclide therapy represents a gentler and potentially more effective way to deliver radiation therapy. Using companion diagnostic imaging (what you see is what you treat), it also supports the practice of precision medicine and offers hope to millions of cancer patients. The session will focus on new targets and directions in this exciting field.
Session Topics:
Novel radionuclide therapies for neuroendocrine tumors: overview of ongoing trials
Speaker: Frances Johnson, MD
Theranostics in prostate cancer: beyond PSMA
Speaker: Hossein Jadvar, MD, PhD, MPH, MBA, FACNM, FSNMMI
New directions for radiopharmaceuticals – a pre-targeting approach.
Speaker: Michael Schultz, PhD
uPAR Theranostics
Speaker: Andreas Kjaer, MD, PhD