Polarean, Inc.

04/17/2026

Our Chief Business Officer Alex Dusek recently visited the growing program at the UAB - The University of Alabama at Birmingham.

At UAB, Alex participated in a study initiation visit led by Ian Lowe, Clinical Research Associate at Boehringer Ingelheim, for a Phase IIa study in Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF). UAB will serve as one of the study sites performing Xenon MRI assessments, supported by an outstanding research team including Elizabeth Plan BS, RRT, Prof. Mark Bolding, PhD, and Teja Kulkarni, MD as the principal investigator.

Under the leadership of Surya Bhatt, the UAB Xenon MRI Advanced Imaging Program continues to expand its impact. The program is poised to conduct Xenon MRI studies across multiple areas, including Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), the Lung Health Cohort, inhaled asthma therapies, interventional pulmonology procedures, and more. Bhatt also directs the UAB Center for Lung Analytics and Imaging Research and is advancing a compelling vision for both research and clinical imaging at UAB.

Polarean looks forward to continuing our collaboration with this pioneering medical center as it works toward becoming the first Xenon MRI clinical imaging center of excellence in the Southeast.

Learn more about our technology: xenoview.net

04/16/2026

During Sarcoidosis Awareness Month, we join the broader community in helping the world .

Sarcoidosis can be complex and often difficult to recognize, with effects that may not always be visible. This month is about shining a light on those unseen experiences, building understanding, and supporting progress in care.

At Polarean, we are focused on helping make the unseen more visible. With , we illuminate regions of the lung that have historically been invisible, helping to support clinical decision-making across disease characterization, treatment planning, assessment over time, and patient understanding.

We recognize the resilience of the sarcoidosis community and the collective efforts of patients, caregivers, clinicians, advocates, and partners who continue to push for moving care forward.

Learn more and get involved: https://www.stopsarcoidosis.org/sarcoidosis-awareness-month/



Foundation for Sarcoidosis Research

04/15/2026

Yesterday was World Quantum Day, and we are proud to highlight how quantum science is already making a real-world impact in healthcare.

At Polarean, the power of optical pumping and hyperpolarization has moved beyond the lab and into patient care, clinical research, and drug development. These same principles are helping shape the future of quantum biosensing and functional medical imaging.

Our journey was shaped by pioneering work from our Chief Scientific Officer Bastiaan Driehuys, PhD, whose landmark publication 30 years ago helped demonstrate high-volume production of laser-polarized xenon-129. That foundational work helped pave the way for what is now modern Xenon MRI.

Today, Dr. Driehuys and his team are continuing that work at Duke Health, advancing gas exchange imaging in interstitial lung disease (ILD) and pulmonary hypertension (PH).

Those same principles are helping clinicians and researchers:

• Detect regional lung disease earlier
• Guide treatment decisions with functional imaging
• Monitor response over time without radiation
• Accelerate development of new therapies through sensitive imaging biomarkers

We are grateful to the hospitals, academic centers, researchers, and clinical teams who continue to advance this field with us and bring innovation to patients.

The quantum era in healthcare is not on the horizon. It is already here. ⚛️

04/08/2026

Released today in the April issue of the CHEST® journal, this peer-reviewed research highlights the potential of structural and functional pulmonary MRI to help identify future pulmonary exacerbation risk in cystic fibrosis.

In the study, people with abnormal ventilation defect percentage (VDP) had a nearly 3x greater pulmonary exacerbation incidence rate.

These findings add to the growing body of research exploring how Xenon MRI provides sensitive regional functional insights in .

Read the article: https://journal.chestnet.org/article/S0012-3692(25)05689-2/abstract

INSIDE LOOK 👀 Read from the upcoming issue (April 8): Original research findings show that structural and functional MRI measurements in people with cystic fibrosis (CF) were associated with future exacerbations, likely because they directly measure underlying structural and functional aspects of disease.

Read more in the journal CHEST®: https://hubs.la/Q0477C_m0

04/02/2026

Yesterday, our VP of Global Sales, Alan Huang, PhD, happened to be in the right seat at the right time, capturing a rare view of the Artemis II rocket from 30,000 feet.

Moments like this remind us how far technology can take us when we pursue what was once out of view.

At Polarean, we are focused on a different frontier, the human lung. With Xenon MRI, we illuminate regions of the lung that have historically been invisible, helping support clinical decision-making across early disease characterization, procedural planning, assessment of therapeutic response, and patient understanding.

Exploration is not only about looking outward. It is also about looking deeper.

03/26/2026

We’re excited to share highlights from a recent milestone event in Taiwan! 🇹🇼

A big thank you to Professor Yuh-Chin Tony Huang (Duke Health) for leading an engaging session with the Departments of Pulmonology and Radiology at National Taiwan University Hospital (NTUH), helping build momentum for at Polarean’s first site in the APAC region.

The discussion explored the growing role of noninvasive, radiation-free functional lung imaging in diseases such as COPD and interstitial lung diseases (ILDs). With the ability to visualize regional lung function in a short breath-hold acquisition, Xenon MRI may offer additional insight into disease heterogeneity patterns and support longitudinal monitoring over time.

We’re also grateful to Sumtage, our distribution partner in Taiwan, for bringing together leading clinicians and researchers for this important exchange.

This marks an important step forward as we continue expanding access to advanced lung imaging globally.

Learn more: xenoview.net

03/24/2026

At LSI - Life Science Intelligence (LSI) USA ’26 in Dana Point, Polarean CEO Christopher von Jako, PhD took the stage to discuss the expanding role of advanced functional imaging in cardiopulmonary disease.

With more than 2,000 attendees, the momentum was clear: technologies that deliver earlier, more precise insight into lung function are becoming increasingly important for improving diagnosis and accelerating therapeutic development.

At Polarean, we’re advancing to help make cardiopulmonary disease more visible and actionable across both research and clinical care.

Thank you to the LSI team for bringing together such a dynamic and forward-looking community!

03/11/2026

For millions of people living with chronic lung disease, including COPD, interstitial lung diseases (ILDs), and severe asthma, pulmonary rehabilitation can help restore strength, endurance, and confidence in daily life.

Yet despite these benefits, pulmonary rehabilitation remains underutilized and underrecognized.

Greater insight into lung function may also help support rehabilitation programs. Tools that visualize regional lung function can provide clinicians with additional perspective and help patients better understand how their lungs are responding to care—supporting engagement and shared decision-making over time.

During (March 8–14), we recognize the respiratory therapists, pulmonologists, rehabilitation specialists, and advocates working every day to expand access to pulmonary rehab and improve outcomes for people living with lung disease.



AACVPR Lung Health Foundation American Lung Association
American Association for Respiratory Care - AARC
Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation European Pulmonary Fibrosis Federation American College of Chest Physicians

03/03/2026

At last week’s Society of Thoracic Radiology ( ) Annual Meeting in Puerto Rico, functional lung imaging was a central theme in conversations about pulmonary disease.

From well-attended sessions to thoughtful discussions in the exhibit hall, it was clear that interest in regional functional imaging continues to grow across thoracic oncology, interstitial lung disease, pulmonary vascular disease, and surgical planning.

A highlight of the meeting was the session on clinical implementation, where Alan Ropp, MD, MS from UVA Health shared real-world experience integrating functional lung MRI into practice.

We appreciated the candid dialogue from radiologists around workflow, adoption, and where functional imaging delivers meaningful clinical value.

Thank you to everyone who connected with our team. We’re energized by the collaboration and encouraged by the continued momentum around functional lung MRI in both research and clinical care.

If you’d like to continue the conversation or learn more, connect with us here:
👉 https://xenoview.net/customer-support/

02/27/2026

300 million people worldwide are living with rare diseases. Many of these conditions affect the lungs and the ability to breathe, impacting both children and adults.

For patients and families, the journey often includes long diagnostic paths, uncertainty, and the need for ongoing monitoring. More sensitive ways to understand lung function earlier in disease progression can play an important role in supporting care over time.

Some people living with rare lung and cardiopulmonary conditions may struggle to perform spirometry consistently. If you’re interested in learning more about a low-effort lung function assessment that can be completed in a single 10–15 second breath-hold, we welcome you to connect with us.

On Rare Disease Day, we stand with patients, families, clinicians, and researchers working to advance understanding, improve monitoring, and move toward better outcomes for rare lung disease.

Learn more: https://www.rarediseaseday.org/

02/19/2026

We’re excited to share that our CEO, Christopher von Jako, PhD, will be presenting at !

LSI USA brings together healthcare leaders, innovators, and investors to explore what’s next in medtech. We look forward to sharing how Polarean’s platform is advancing functional lung imaging and helping deliver new insights into pulmonary health.

If you’ll be attending LSI USA ’26, we’d love to connect.

Want to learn more or get in touch with our team?
👉 https://xenoview.net/customer-support/

02/12/2026

Did you catch Polarean’s platform featured in the January/February issue of Radiology Today Magazine?

In the article, our CEO Christopher von Jako, PhD, shares how Xenon MRI is advancing functional lung imaging by capturing ventilation images in 10 seconds or less ⏱️ and delivering regional functional insight that conventional imaging and spirometry often can’t provide.

“We’re imaging the gas, not the water content or tissue signal in the lung. If there’s any place where the xenon can’t get to, oxygen is not getting there either,” Chris explains.

This noninvasive, radiation-free technology is opening new doors for visualizing lung function and is being explored across clinical and research settings for conditions including asthma, COPD, cystic fibrosis, and unexplained breathlessness, in adults and children as young as 6. 🫁

👉 Read the full article:
https://www.radiologytoday.net/archive/rt_JF26p6.shtml

Radiology Today newsmagazine reaches 40,000 radiology professionals nationwide on a monthly basis, covering areas such as Radiology Management, Bone Densitometry, Mammography, MRI, PACS, CT, Sonography, Nuclear Medicine, Radiation Oncology, Radiation Therapy, contrast agents, and more!