Automated brain MRS to improve cancer imaging
Official title: Full-stack automation for reliable and reproducible MRS of brain cancer
Funded at University of Minnesota · NIH-11380557 · Data updated 2026-11-12
A research project aims to make brain tumor magnetic resonance spectroscopy faster, more reliable, and easier to use by automating real-time measurements and providing open-source tools.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Minnesota NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Minneapolis, United States) |
| Project start | September 8, 2023 |
| Project end | August 31, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $433,961 |
| NIH project number | 5R01EB034231-04 |
| Project ID | NIH-11380557 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Adults with brain tumors undergoing MRI/MRS as part of clinical care or research.
✕Less likely to help
Patients not undergoing brain MRS or not involving brain tumor imaging may not benefit.
What this research studies
This project will create automated, real-time single-voxel MRS methods for brain tumors and integrate them with a clinical MRI system. It also plans to develop 3D voxel placement using image guidance, then automate data acquisition and analysis so results are easy for clinicians and researchers to interpret. The team will test performance in real-world settings and share the open-source software with the wider research community. The goal is to remove the need for highly specialized operators and improve data quality for better understanding of tumor biology and treatment response.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, clinicians could obtain more consistent metabolic information from brain tumors with less expertise required, potentially guiding better treatment decisions.
How similar studies have gone: Previous work shows automated spectroscopy can improve consistency, but this project emphasizes real-time automation and open-source availability in clinical systems.
Where this research is happening
-
University of Minnesota
Minneapolis, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Marjanska, Malgorzata — University of Minnesota
- Study coordinator: Marjanska, Malgorzata
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.