LABORATORY INFORMATICS Around 100,000 people are eligible to
use HeartFlow over the next three years, with more than 35,000 people set to benefit each year. Matt Whitty, director of innovation and
life sciences for NHS England, said: ‘This latest innovation will help patients and will contribute to helping the NHS to recover from the pandemic as we continue to deliver on our ambitious Long Term Plan commitments to provide patients across the country with the most up to date tech, as quickly as possible.’ ‘HeartFlow has been a huge success in clinical trials, and will now help tens of thousands of people a year receive quick diagnosis and treatment, and ultimately save lives,’ Whitty continued. Dr Derek Connolly, consultant
interventional cardiologist at Sandwell & West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust said: ‘For every five patients who have a cardiac CT and a HeartFlow Analysis, four patients go home knowing they don’t need anything else. Half of those patients will be on cholesterol tablets because they have early disease, and the other half will have normal coronary arteries. ‘Incorporating the HeartFlow Analysis has had a meaningful impact at our hospitals, improving the diagnosis and treatment of the leading cause of death,’ added Connolly. The NHS Long Term Plan promised that patients would benefit from faster adoption of cutting-edge technology and treatments. This latest technology has been
major killers, as well as ensuring patients would benefit from cutting edge therapies and techniques, and HeartFlow is just the latest example of that. ‘By rapidly improving the rate we diagnose and treat those with a heart condition, we will save thousands of lives and ensure, as well as delivering the most successful vaccination programme in health service history, the NHS is able to deliver routine services even quicker than before the pandemic.’
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rolled out across the NHS as part of the MedTech Funding Mandate policy, an NHS Long Term Plan commitment that supports the implementation of proven medical devices, diagnostics and digital products. Since the NHS Long Term Plan was published, NHS England has rolled out the headache-busting device GammaCore, as well as Covid-friendly cancer drugs. In January HeartFlow announced that the National Health Service England (NHSE) and NHS Improvement have mandated that English hospitals adopt the AI-powered HeartFlow FFRCT Analysis. The HeartFlow Analysis has been
selected as one of the innovations supported by NHSE’s new MedTech Funding Mandate. The mandate, which began on 1 April, aims to provide innovative medical devices and digital products to NHSE patients faster, and is a key policy in helping to improve patient care and reduce costs for the public health service.
The mandate includes the option to extend funding for up to an additional
“Incorporating the HeartFlow Analysis has had a meaningful impact at our hospitals, improving the diagnosis and treatment of the leading cause of death”
three years through 31 March 2024. At the January announcement Dr Anna Beattie, consultant cardiothoracic radiologist at Newcastle Hospitals, commented on the new technology: ‘We have used the HeartFlow Analysis in Newcastle Hospitals since August 2018. It has contributed to significant changes in the way we diagnose patients and use hospital resources. ‘Prior to adopting the technology, we
used a coronary CT-first approach for 28 per cent of all patients referred to our rapid access chest pain clinic. Now that has risen to more than 45 per cent and the number of diagnostic-only invasive angiograms we perform has reduced. The HeartFlow Analysis is a great tool to supplement a CT-first approach by providing functional information, on top of the anatomical information from a CT scan. This is great for patients, as it reduces unnecessary risks, and means they spend less time at the hospital.’ Dr Timothy Fairbairn, consultant
cardiologist at Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital, said: ‘In our practice, four out of five patients who have a HeartFlow Analysis avoid the need for further invasive testing. This enables us to treat patients more quickly, leading to an improved patient experience, and has had a positive impact on our waiting times for other non-invasive stress tests. ‘The MedTech Funding Mandate allowed
us to have a positive conversation with our commissioners, emphasising the real benefits our practice has experienced, and secure funding for continued use of the HeartFlow Analysis going forward. The MedTech Funding Mandate and funding commitment from commissioners means NHS hospitals will be able to continue to offer the best available technologies in our approach to the diagnosis and management of CHD for patients.’ HeartFlow’s technology is already used in 60 NHSE hospitals. The extension of the ITP and introduction of the MedTech Funding Mandate will allow hospitals to continue providing cutting-edge care to patients and accelerate the adoption of the technology in hospitals throughout the country.
Spring 2021 Scientific Computing World 29
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