GE Healthcare to re-imagine radiology at Arab Health 2008

Today, the region faces a number of significant and serious healthcare challenges: life expectancy lags behind developed countries, the population is both increasing and ageing, and its citizens suffer some of the highest rates of obesity and diabetes in the world. The cost of treatment for cardiovascular disease alone is set to increase significantly over the next twenty years. These healthcare challenges are not only affecting the current reality of healthcare across the region, but it is also fast-changing the outlook and demand, region-wide.

GE's "Healthcare Re-imagined" vision promotes the "Early Health" model of care - helping clinicians re-imagine new ways to predict, diagnose, inform and treat disease, so their patients can live their lives to the fullest. This is the company's focused response to the projected rise in healthcare costs in the GCC region from $12bn today to $60bn by 2025*.

"The Middle East has new market drivers today such as a strong private sector, the emergence of health tourism, enterprise selling and shifts in health insurance policies. In parallel, the trend in manageable disease conditions such as obesity, diabetes and stress are on the rise. GE's 'Healthcare Re-imagined' approach encourages healthcare providers and the public to consider shifting their focus from late disease to early health, where there can be many more treatment options - which ultimately benefits the patient,"

said Isam Moursy, General Manager at GE Healthcare for the Middle East, Africa, Central Asia and Turkey (MECAT) region.

GE's comprehensive portfolio to be highlighted at this year's Arab Health 2008 will introduce a new level to the healthcare industry and have a profound impact on medical diagnostics in the Middle East.

"We are very pleased to be a part of Arab Health again this year and privileged to present to industry experts, institutions and the public the latest GE Healthcare innovations. GE Healthcare is the only healthcare organization with the strength to bring together the best in science, technology, and business to redefine the frontiers of discovery, diagnosis, treatment and information management," said Moursy.

GE's "Healthcare Re-Imagined" vision has practical applications with modern disease conditions. "Cardiac patients, for example, have a 45% chance of survival if treatment begins at onset of symptoms. An 'Early Health' model using diagnostic tools such as cardiac biomarkers, non-invasive diagnostic imaging, targeted therapies, and IT-based disease management can nearly double the survival rates from cardiac disease," said Moursy.

He added: "Similarly, costs for late-stage treatment of breast cancer (stage four) can be five to six times higher than treatment following early discovery in stage one. Early screening solutions enable physicians to intervene before breast cancer advances on its deadly course."

Today, 70 to 80% of the resources in healthcare are devoted to managing symptom-based, advanced diseases. "GE Healthcare's vision of 'Healthcare Re-imagined' is all about re-thinking healthcare as we know it today and implementing an 'Early Health' model of care. GE is investing US$1 billion in R&D annually to deliver tools that will help physicians diagnose disease at the earliest possible stage when there can be many treatment options - which is better medicine and makes economic sense," said Moursy.

Arab Health is the annual international hospital, medical equipment and services exhibition and conference. GE Healthcare's products, services and clinical images will be on display at the company's stand (Hall 4 - Stand 4D20) at the exhibition in the Dubai International Exhibition Centre.