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New mammography system demonstrates Fujifilm’s commitment to women’s health
By Jacqui Thornton, health journalist
New Amulet Sophinity mammography system is less painful for women, easier for radiographers and provides sharper images for radiologists to detect cancer.
For some women, breast screening is a necessary but uncomfortable, potentially life-saving procedure. For others, having a mammogram can be painful, due to the compression of the breast tissue needed to get a clear reading.
The process can cause anxiety, being in a small room overwhelmed by a machine towering above them, exacerbated by a recall if the result is unclear. For those who are attending a clinic having found a lump or other symptom of cancer, it can be a very frightening time.
To solve many of these concerns, Fujifilm Healthcare Europe is launching a new AI supported mammography platform, developed in collaboration with radiologists and radiographers, to offer the best possible experience for all women.
Amulet Sophinity, which was revealed in February at the European Congress of Radiology 2024 in Vienna, uses new compression technology which offers relief from the pressure that can cause discomfort.
It is also a less intimidating machine, with the gantry height reduced. Further, it produces higher quality, sharper images than its predecessor with low dose radiation, and has a better user-friendly design to assist radiographers, reducing wrist pain during operation.
The AI supports the patient positioning by showing the skin line and nipple position via a projection to the compression paddle of previous mammograms from the patient, using a function called Positioning MAP.
Another algorithm (Positioning Analysis) gives immediate feedback after the exposure, demonstrating how well the exam meets the patient positioning criteria, saving time and avoiding unnecessary recalls for the patient.
And it can instantly compare patient positioning by analysing images with previous mammograms from the patient, using a function called Positioning MAP.
It’s part of a new focus on women’s health by Fujifilm, which spans obstetrics, gynaecology and bone disease, and has given rise to a new brand name for these solutions called ‘InnoMuse’ -signifying innovation for all women.
In Vienna, Fujifilm held a special evening event showcasing Amulet Sophinity and revealing the new focus. Toshiyuki Nabeta, corporate vice president and general manager of the Medical Systems, R&D Center in Tokyo, flew in to address the audience.
He said: “We want to be the backbone to the health of all women with our diverse and cutting-edge technologies. We want to be the pillar of support for them to live to the fullest. We are here for all women to have a healthy tomorrow they can celebrate.”
Earlier at the ECR, staff at Fujifilm’s booth showed off its comprehensive package for radiologists looking for malignancies.
They include 2D mammography and 3D tomosynthesis using Amulet Sophinity and its predecessor Amulet Innovality, as well as the Arrietta Ultrasound Scanning system, which can be used to detect cancer in younger women with more dense breast tissue.
Plus, Fujifilm is the only medical diagnostic company to offer specialist Open MRI scanning which enables radiologists to perform breast biopsies at the same time as the imaging, using the Oasis Velocity.
The new mammography platform – named Sophinity as a combination of sophisticated and infinity – has been trialled in two sites in Germany, already supporting over 600 women. It will now be piloted in new areas before a commercial launch later in the year.
Jörg Müller, manager of women’s health product and clinical at Fujifilm Healthcare Europe, said: “Visitors to our booth loved the look and style, it’s slim and more compact, not a monster like other machines, which dominate the room.”
Müller added the beauty of the Sophinity is that it is a platform which can be added to as technologies develop. “It is future-proof.”
One of the radiologists taking a first look at the Sophinity was Dr Anna Russo, who works as a radiologist at the L’IRCCS Ospedale Sacro Cuore Don Calabriain Negrar in northern Italy. She said she hoped it would be installed there before the end of the year.
She has used Fujifilm’s mammogram machines for 10 years and said the company offers a full range of diagnostics to help female patients through a difficult time.
“Fujifilm offers possibilities for all of the exams that women need to detect breast cancer.”
Dr Russo was particularly impressed by the clinical advancements of the new system.
She said: “The image quality of the microcalcifications which are a sign of cancer is improved. The morphology of the breast – the glandular tissue, the adipose tissue and the blood vessels – it’s a better representation of all the tissue.”
Patients with suspected cancer usually need an MRI scan after a biopsy to confirm cancer, which Dr Russo describes as the gold standard. But the new Fujifilm machine can avoid the need for MRI, as it can perform a contrast mammogram which detects the vascularity of the lesion, which is a sign of malignancy.
Aside from the clinical improvements, she said it would be preferred by her patients due to the Comfort Comp function.
“The pain due to the compression is one of their main concerns and some women feel more pain than others. With this new machine the way it compresses the breast means less pain.”
Amanda Leitch, an application specialist with Fujifilm Healthcare Europe, and a former NHS radiographer, said once the right pressure has been reached, the compression is released, while still being able to give a clear reading.
“It’s like a mattress which keeps its indentation of the body once you have got off the bed,” she explained.
Dr Russo added that her radiographers would also benefit from the new design, as the fine pressure adjustment is operated by the flat of the hand not a dial which has reportedly caused wrist pain. “The ergonomic design is very interesting.”
Mandy Muller, the head of human resources at Fujifilm Healthcare Europe, said she was delighted that the company had decided to specialise in women’s health.
“For any woman who’s going through a medical dilemma, it’s a scary time. I’m eternally grateful to know that Fujifilm is supporting women, helping give them peace of mind with a minimally invasive procedure.
“To be part of a company that is focusing on that is inspirational.”
A new Female Health Hub launched by the English FA will support women and girls in grassroots football in England with trusted advice on health issues affecting play.
The hub brings together expert-backed guidance, practical tools and player insights in one place, giving women and girls practical advice and reassurance on female health in football.
It has four core aims: to help women and girls better understand their bodies and how female health affects performance and participation, to educate players on key health topics and when to seek further advice or support, to provide practical strategies to help navigate common female health challenges, and to help break down taboos and normalise conversations around female health in football.
Users of the hub will also be able to hear directly from members of the England women’s national team, who share their own experiences of navigating female health matters while playing at the highest level of the game.
“Our ambition is to create a game where women and girls can thrive,” said Sue Day, the FA’s director of women’s football.
“To achieve that, it’s essential that players feel supported in environments that understand and respond to their female health needs.
“We’ve heard directly from grassroots players that they want better information and support around female health, but that they often don’t know where to find it.
“The launch of the Female Health Hub marks an important step in changing the landscape.
“We want every player to feel confident in her own skin and supported without judgment, so she can feel empowered by her body, rather than held back by it.”
The platform was launched following research conducted by the FA that highlighted the need for better education and support around female health in football.
According to the FA, 88 per cent of adult players surveyed said their menstrual cycle has an impact on their ability to train or play, but 86 per cent reported they had never received education about the menstrual cycle in relation to football performance and training.
The research also found 64 per cent of women experience issues related to sports bras or breast health while playing football, despite sports bras being considered one of the most important pieces of playing kit.
Players also expressed strong interest in learning more about injury prevention, at 87 per cent, nutrition, at 84 per cent, and mental health, at 77 per cent, in relation to female health.
The first phase of the Female Health Hub focuses on three of the most requested topics: menstrual health, breast health and injury resilience, with further content to follow, including nutrition and pelvic health guidance.
The Royal College of Midwives (RCM) has referred to the women’s health strategy as a ‘missed opportunity’ to address maternity services.
The renewed strategy was released by the government this week, with the aim of putting women’s experiences at the centre of care and ensuring they are “better heard and served”.
However, the government stated that because of ongoing investigations into maternity services across the country, the strategy “does not seek to address safety in maternity and neonatal services”.
The RCM described this as a “missed opportunity” and urged the government to ensure that, following the inquiries, maternity is placed “at the very heart” of the strategy.
Gill Walton, RCM chief executive, said the college was “deeply disappointed” that maternity services “do not feature as a headline priority” in the renewed strategy.
She said: “This is a significant missed opportunity and one that is very difficult to understand.
“Pregnancy, birth and the postnatal period are not a footnote in women’s health – they are one of the most significant and consequential phases of a woman’s life.
“A strategy that treats maternity as an afterthought is not truly a women’s health strategy at all. It is exactly the kind of thinking that has allowed maternity services to reach the point they are at today.”
Walton acknowledged that the strategy contained commitments on ensuring women’s voices shape their care, on supporting families through pregnancy loss and on the principle that services should be held accountable when they fail to listen to women.
She added: “But a strategy that addresses one part of women’s health while leaving maternity care behind is only doing half the job.”
Walton urged the government to ensure that this is addressed when the ongoing investigations into maternity care conclude, with any recommendations placed “at the very heart of this strategy with the seriousness and urgency that women, families and midwives deserve”.
In the foreword to the renewed plans, health and social care secretary Wes Streeting referred to the ongoing independent National Maternity and Neonatal Investigation as action being taken by the government to improve safety in maternity services.
The strategy also refers to the new National Maternity and Neonatal Taskforce, chaired by Streeting, which aims to help deliver “safer, more equitable care” for women, babies and families.
The foreword said that, because of ongoing initiatives, it was “important that this work continues without restriction and that the government can properly respond to the findings”.
It added: “This renewed women’s health strategy therefore does not seek to address safety in maternity and neonatal services other than that related to women’s health before and during pregnancy and the actions we are taking immediately to improve maternity and neonatal care.”
The strategy does, however, include plans to prioritise health education in schools, communities and healthcare settings to “empower women” with the “knowledge and tools they need to help control their fertility” and “prepare for the best pregnancy outcomes.
It also promises to provide women with access to “safe and high-quality contraception, abortion care, fertility services, preconception care and support after pregnancy loss in convenient settings.
Article produced in association with London Pregnancy Clinic and Jeen Health
For the majority of couples planning a pregnancy, genetic testing is not something they think about until a problem arises.
Pre-conception genetic carrier screening challenges this approach by identifying risk before pregnancy begins.
As panel sizes have grown and at-home testing options have become widely available, carrier screening is transitioning from a niche clinical referral into a mainstream component of reproductive planning.
What Carrier Screening Tests For
Being a carrier of a genetic condition means carrying one copy of a variant in a gene associated with that condition, without being affected by it.
In most cases, carriers are entirely unaware of their status.
The clinical significance of carrier status emerges when both members of a couple carry a variant in the same gene: in this scenario, each pregnancy carries a one in four chance of resulting in a child who inherits two copies of the variant and is affected by the condition.
The conditions most frequently included in expanded carrier screening panels include cystic fibrosis, spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), fragile X syndrome, sickle cell disease, and a range of metabolic and enzyme deficiency disorders.
The Beacon 787 carrier test, offered by Jeen Health, screens for 787 conditions from a single sample, making it one of the most comprehensive panels currently available to UK families.
Who Is Most Likely to Benefit
Any couple planning a pregnancy can consider carrier screening. It is particularly relevant for:
- Couples with a family history of a known inherited condition
- Those from populations with higher carrier frequencies for specific conditions, including Ashkenazi Jewish, South Asian and African communities
- Couples pursuing fertility treatment, where genetic information informs treatment planning
- Those who wish to have the most complete picture of their reproductive health before conception
Importantly, being a carrier of a condition does not mean a child will be affected. It means there is a defined statistical risk that can be quantified, discussed and planned for with appropriate clinical support.
How the Test Is Performed
Carrier screening is typically carried out on a blood or saliva sample.
For at-home options such as the testing offered by Jeen Health, a cheek swab collection kit is dispatched to the patient, the sample is returned by post, and results are delivered digitally within a defined turnaround period.
In-clinic carrier testing may use a blood draw and provides the advantage of immediate access to a clinical consultation at the point of result delivery.
London Pregnancy Clinic offers genetics counselling through its partnership with Jeen Health, allowing couples to receive and contextualise carrier test results with expert support.
Genetic counselling before and after testing is recommended by Genomics England as a standard component of any genomic testing pathway.
What Happens If Both Partners Are Carriers
If both partners are identified as carriers for the same autosomal recessive condition, they are typically offered further counselling to discuss their options.
These may include proceeding naturally with an awareness of the risk, using prenatal diagnosis (CVS or amniocentesis) during pregnancy to test the fetus, or pursuing preimplantation genetic testing (PGT) in the context of IVF, which allows unaffected embryos to be selected before transfer.
The purpose of identifying carrier status before pregnancy is to give couples time to consider these options without the added pressure of an ongoing pregnancy.
Knowledge of carrier status does not remove reproductive choices; it expands the information available when making them.
The Role of Pre-Conception Services
Carrier screening sits within a broader category of pre-conception care that includes fertility assessments, general health optimisation and, where relevant, management of existing conditions before pregnancy begins.
London Pregnancy Clinic offers pre-conception services encompassing fertility investigations, genetics counselling and carrier testing as part of an integrated 0th trimester approach, allowing couples to address genetic and clinical risk factors before their pregnancy starts rather than after.
Disclaimer: This article is produced for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.
Clinical guidance referenced reflects published NHS, NICE and RCOG standards as at March 2026. Individual circumstances vary; readers are advised to consult a qualified healthcare professional before acting on any information in this article.
This piece was produced in association with London Pregnancy Clinic and Jeen Health, which provided background clinical information for editorial purposes.
Hyperlinks to external sources are included for reference only and do not represent an endorsement of any product, service or organisation.
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