Jenny Hoang, MBBS, MHS, MBA, Principal Investigator for the American College of Radiology® (ACR®) Thyroid Imaging, Reporting and Data System (TI-RADS™) Research Registry, contributed this piece.
Clinical research is crucial to driving advancements in the field and practice of radiology. Today, researchers are making new discoveries at a rapid pace and often find themselves in search of support to fuel further innovation. This is why the ACR Center for Research and Innovation created the Fund for Collaborative Research in Imaging (FCRI) Grant.
In 2018, I applied for the FCRI Grant, known at that time as the ACRIN® Fund, to support the creation and collection of data for the ACR TI-RADS Research Registry (TIRR). While other thyroid nodule research studies included only suspicious thyroid nodules recommended for FNA, ACR TIRR allowed us to collect data on all nodules reported on diagnostic ultrasound. Furthermore, participating sites included both academic and private practices.
By March 2021, our registry consisted of full data sets on 27,933 nodules in 12,208 patients. We showed that ACR Thyroid Imaging Reporting and Data System recommended 25 to 50% fewer biopsies compared to American Thyroid Association Management Guidelines, European TI-RADS, and Korean TI-RADS due to differences in size thresholds and criteria for risk levels. The magnitude of avoided biopsies was higher in our registry than in other studies that only included suspicious nodules.
Our study evaluated ACR TIRADS in the real-world setting and would not have been possible without the FCRI Grant, supported by internal teams in ACR who help to project manage, liaise with subsites, coordinate contracts and build on existing IT infrastructure to create the registry.
If your facility has a pilot or seed project that tests a new idea or helps support a new area or direction of clinical radiology research, I encourage you to submit a Letter of Intent for the 2023 FCRI Grant cycle. Learn more about the process and make your submission by Jan. 31. The FCRI Grant could be your launch pad for impactful radiology research.
