The Environmental Impact of Gadolinium

This 25 minute talk will be one of 4 in the 2020 ISMRM Junior Fellow Symposium entitled ‘The environmental impact of MRI’. This educational-type talk should cover the use and disposal of gadolinium, as a rare earth element used extensively in clinical MRI. This could include (1) an overview of the production of gadolinium-based contrast agents and their environmental impact, (2) an overview of where it goes after being used (i.e. Gad in drinking water?) and what the consequences of this are for the environment, and (3) an overview of its use, e.g. in which techniques is it used and for which pathologies, and potential solutions for gadolinium-free imaging.

Making, Disposing, and Recycling MRI Scanners

This 25 minute talk will be one of 4 in the 2020 ISMRM Junior Fellow Symposium entitled ‘The environmental impact of MRI’ and should cover the environmental impact of the production, disposal and potential recycling of MRI scanners, with a particular interest in the hardware of the systems. This education-type talk could include an overview of the materials required and the energy and supplies consumed before a scanner is made, as well as the toll disposal/recycling has after a scan system is decommissioned. Additionally, problems to be overcome or solutions to be made within the chain from production to disposal of scanners to reduce the environmental impact of MRI can be included within this talk.