PET Scan Services
What is Positron Emission Tomography?
PET is a powerful diagnostic test that is having a major impact on the diagnosis and treatment of disease. Because disease is a biological process, and PET is a biological imaging examination, PET can detect and stage most cancers, often before they are evident through other tests. PET can also give physician important early information about heart disease and many neurological disorders, like Alzheimer’s.
A PET scan examines the body’s chemistry. Most common medical tests, like CT and MRI scans, only show details about the structure of the body. PET is different as it provides information about function. With a single PET procedure, physicians can collect images of function throughout the entire body uncovering abnormalities that might otherwise go undetected.
For example, a PET scan is the most accurate, non-invasive way to tell whether or not a tumor is benign or malignant, sparing patients the often painful diagnostic surgeries and suggesting treatment options earlier in the course of the disease. And although cancer spreads silently in the body, PET can inspect most organs of the body for cancer in a single examination!
Benefits of PET scan are:
- Whole-body staging in ONE exam
- Fewer repeated CT and MRI procedures
- Faster scan times, reducing patient discomfort
- Reduction in sampling errors of CT guided biopsies
- Accurate diagnosis of disease states
- Improves accuracy in radiation therapy treatments
- Provides hope and peace of mind
How does PET work?
When disease strikes, the biochemistry of tissues and cells changes. In cancer, for example, cells begin to grow at a much faster rate, feeding on sugars like glucose. PET works by using a very small amount of a radioactive tracer chemically attached to glucose or other compounds. The patient is injected with the tracer compound. It travels through the body and eventually collects in areas of potential disease or abnormality.
The tracer compound emits radiation which is detected by the PET scanner. The scanner records these signals and transforms them into images. Regions of abnormal uptake are highlighted in these images. A trained Nuclear Medicine Physician interprets these images and can determine if disease is present and the stage of the disease.
What can PET see that other tests cannot?
PET is able to detect extremely small cancerous tumors and very subtle changes of function in the brain and heart. This allows physicians to treat these diseases earlier and more accurately. A PET scan puts time on your side! The earlier the diagnosis, the better chance for treatment.
What is PET used to Diagnose?
PET is used to diagnose and stage patients with cancer, as well as patients with certain brain and heart disorders.
In cancer, PET can:
- Distinguish benign from malignant tumours
- Stage cancer by showing metastases anywhere in the body
- Prove whether or not treatment therapies are working
In the heart, PET can:
- Quantify the extent of heart disease
- Determine, after a heart attack, if the heart muscle would benefit from surgery
In the brain, PET can:
- Positively diagnose Alzheimer’s disease for early intervention
- Locate tumors in the brain and distinguish tumor from scar tissue
- Locate the focus of seizures for some patients with epilepsy
- More accurately assess tumour and other sites in the brain for delicate surgery