An open-source repository-based tool for quality control of imaging protocol compliance: demonstration in a multicentre MRI study

Sam Keaveney; Damien J McHugh; Mihaela Rata; Alina Dragan; Jessica M Winfield; Simon J Doran; Matthew D Blackledge; Erica Scurr; Dow-Mu Koh; Michael Berks; Andrew B Gill; Jonathan R Birchall; James P B O'Connor; Alexander King; Winston J Rennie; Suchi Gaba; Priya Suresh; Paul Malcolm; Amy Davis; Anjumara Nilak; Aarti Shah; Sanjay Gandhi; Mauro Albrizio; Guy Pratt; Gordon Cook; Andrew Hall; Sadie Roberts; Matthew Jenner; Sarah Brown; Martin Kaiser; Penny L Hubbard Cristinacce; Christina Messiou

doi:10.1093/bjr/tqaf089

An open-source repository-based tool for quality control of imaging protocol compliance: demonstration in a multicentre MRI study

Br J Radiol. 2025 Jun 10:tqaf089. doi: 10.1093/bjr/tqaf089. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Sam Keaveney^{1

2}, Damien J McHugh^{3

4}, Mihaela Rata^{1

2}, Alina Dragan¹, Jessica M Winfield^{1

2}, Simon J Doran^{1

2}, Matthew D Blackledge^{1

2}, Erica Scurr¹, Dow-Mu Koh^{1

2}, Michael Berks⁴, Andrew B Gill^{5

6}, Jonathan R Birchall⁵, James P B O'Connor^{2

4

7}, Alexander King⁸, Winston J Rennie⁹, Suchi Gaba¹⁰, Priya Suresh¹¹, Paul Malcolm¹², Amy Davis¹³, Anjumara Nilak¹⁴, Aarti Shah¹⁵, Sanjay Gandhi¹⁶, Mauro Albrizio¹⁷, Guy Pratt¹⁸, Gordon Cook^{19

20}, Andrew Hall¹⁹, Sadie Roberts¹⁹, Matthew Jenner⁸, Sarah Brown¹⁹, Martin Kaiser^{21

22}, Penny L Hubbard Cristinacce⁴, Christina Messiou^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ MRI Unit, The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust, London.
² Division of Radiotherapy and Imaging, The Institute of Cancer Research, London.
³ Christie Medical Physics and Engineering, The Christie NHS Foundation Trust, Manchester.
⁴ Quantitative Biomedical Imaging, Division of Cancer Sciences, University of Manchester, Manchester.
⁵ Department of Radiology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge.
⁶ Department of Radiology, Royal Papworth Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Cambridge.
⁷ Department of Radiology, The Christie NHS Foundation Trust, Manchester.
⁸ University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust, Southampton.
⁹ University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, Leicester.
¹⁰ University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust, Stoke-on-Trent.
¹¹ University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust, Plymouth.
¹² Norfolk & Norwich University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Norwich.
¹³ Epsom & St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust, Epsom.
¹⁴ Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust, Worcester.
¹⁵ Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Basingstoke.
¹⁶ North Bristol NHS Trust, Bristol.
¹⁷ Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust, Nottingham.
¹⁸ University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, Birmingham.
¹⁹ Clinical Trials Research Unit, Leeds Institute of Clinical Trials Research, University of Leeds, Leeds.
²⁰ Leeds Cancer Centre, Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, Leeds.
²¹ Division of Genetics and Epidemiology, The Institute of Cancer Research, London.
²² Department of Haematology, The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust, London.

PMID: 40493889
DOI: 10.1093/bjr/tqaf089

Abstract

Objectives: Clinical translation of advanced MRI techniques can be hindered by the challenges of performing standardised multicentre imaging trials. This work aims to develop and demonstrate an automated tool for monitoring imaging protocol deviations, enabling corrective action to be taken.

Methods: A Python-based tool, integrated into the imaging repository XNAT, was developed to compare DICOM series with an agreed imaging protocol, highlighting missing series and parameter deviations. This was demonstrated through retrospective analysis of a prospectively acquired dataset from a ten-site whole-body (WB) MRI study of patients with multiple myeloma. The acquired data were compared to the relevant radiological guidelines and to the site-specific imaging protocols agreed for the study.

Results: The rate of technical software failure was 0% across 174 examinations from ten sites. The clinical guidelines were followed in 87.9% of examinations and compliance with the site-specific imaging protocol was greater than 75.0% for all parameters. Common deviations included number of averages for diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) and repetition time for DWI and Dixon: 85.2%, 81.7% and 75.1%, respectively. There was a statistically significant correlation between protocol compliance and overall exam radiological image quality.

Conclusions: Repository-integrated software is presented for automated monitoring of imaging protocol compliance to support standardisation in multicentre studies and clinical translation.

Advances in knowledge: This study presents a novel open-source repository-integrated software tool for automatically monitoring compliance with the expected imaging protocol. Standardised acquisition protocols are crucial in multicentre imaging studies and this tool has the potential to enhance research outcomes and support clinical translation.

Keywords: Clinical Translation; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Multiple Myeloma; Quality Control; Software; Whole-body Imaging.