CMIIT President's Message

As SNMMI continues to broaden its activities and offerings to encompass all molecular imaging modalities, the Center for Molecular Imaging Innovation and Translation (CMIIT) will focus its attention on the translation of innovative new technologies and agents. Our recently completed strategic planning process resulted in a new vision and mission that better aligns with the expertise of our membership:

Vision: Molecular imaging will be an integral part of the medical standard of care by providing specific information that will be used for diagnosis and to guide therapeutic decisions that improve health and well-being.

Mission: To engage the molecular imaging community and leverage the SNM infrastructure to advance the adoption of emerging molecular imaging technologies and probes in preclinical and clinical applications.

Over the next year, CMIIT will be partnering with SNMMI on an Optical Imaging Task Force. The Task Force has been charged with: (1) looking at ways to engage the optical imaging community, particularly those interested in clinical translation of the technology, (2) developing appropriate meeting content (possibly at SNM meetings, at other meetings like the Optical Society of America, or even a stand-alone meeting), and (3) developing other education and membership content that will appeal to the optical imaging community.

As with most successful ventures, it is important to not only use internal resources and expertise, but to also collaborate and partner with likeminded individuals and organizations. This year, CMIIT is partnering with the PET Center of Excellence on a full day symposium at the 2013 Mid-Winter Meeting on PET/MR; A Different Spin on Nuclear Imaging: The Role of PET/MRI in Molecular Imaging. The symposium will provide a review of the issues related to PET/MRI technology including brief primers on physics and instrumentation, emerging dual imaging biomarkers, and potential clinical applications in neurologic, cardiovascular, oncologic, and musculoskeletal disorders.

SNMMI through CMIIT’s initiation is also partnering with the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) to put on a special meeting, “State-of-the-Art Molecular Imaging in Cancer Biology and Therapy,” that will take place in February 2013. This collaboration is a first for both organizations and arises from the CMIIT and SNMMI strategic plans, in which CMIIT is charged with “Increasing knowledge among members of the scientific community involved in biomedical research about the current value and future promise of molecular imaging, help cross fertilization to other disciplines, and make them aware of the power of molecular imaging and help researchers there get their advances and discoveries to clinic using in vivo imaging.”

In addition, CMIIT will also be focusing on several key initiatives:

1. Outreach to the NIH National Center for Advancing Translational Science (NCATS);
2. Preclinical imaging standardization and training;
3. Outreach to academic tech transfer officers and companies to discuss and develop best practices to commercialize agents and technologies.

These continuing efforts will make our Center, as well as SNMMI, an effective advocate, a comprehensive educational resource, and a welcoming organizational home for all molecular imaging professionals.