Molecular Imaging

Molecular imaging (also called nuclear medicine or nuclear imaging) can image the function of cells inside the body at the molecular level. This includes the imaging modalities of positron emission computed tomography (PET) and single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) imaging. How does PET and SPECT imaging work? Small amounts of radioactive material (radiopharmaceuticals) injected into a patient. These can use sugars or chemical traits to bond to specific cells. The radioactive material is taken up by cells that consume the sugars. The radiation emitted from inside the body is detected by photon detectors outside the body. Computers take the data to assemble images of the radiation emissions. Nuclear images may appear fuzzy or ghostly rather than the sharper resolution from MRI and CT.  But, it provides metabolic information at a cellular level, showing if there are defects in the function of the heart, areas of very high metabolic activity associated with cancer cells, or areas of inflammation, data not available from other modalities. These noninvasive imaging exams are used to diagnose cancer, heart disease, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease, bone disorders and other disorders. 

18f-fluda-team-in-front-of-nanoscan-pet-mri-1.jpg

Researchers develop new PET tracer to diagnose Parkinson’s

German scientists recently beat out 21 other projects in a three-year contest to improve the differential diagnosis of the disease.

February 28, 2020

Shine Medical Technologies announces plans to open new Mo-99 plant in Europe

Founder and CEO Greg Piefer made the announcement during a recent Wisconsin Technology Council luncheon in Madison, according to a recent report. 

February 28, 2020

'Unconventional' PET/CT imaging agent earns high marks for spotting tumors

The new radiopharmaceutical has only been tested in mice thus far, but investigators believe it can overcome some of the problems inherent in similarly labeled materials.

February 27, 2020

PET, CT combine to shorten tuberculosis treatment times

"We hope that the tool will one day enable clinicians to determine the most effective doses of specific drugs in specific patients, so as to further optimize the treatment of infectious diseases," investigators of the new trial wrote in Nature Medicine.

February 24, 2020

Digital PET detects smaller cancerous lesions, produces images nuclear medicine experts prefer

Providers believe the digital modality could ultimately provide a more accurate cancer diagnosis compared to conventional PET, authors reported in the Journal of Nuclear Medicine.

February 19, 2020

NorthStar’s new FDA approval means ‘immediate increase’ in Mo-99 production

The U.S Food and Drug Administration gave the go-ahead for two additional molybdenum-99 filling lines at the company's Columbia, Missouri, facility.

February 18, 2020
carestream_3.jpg

FDA approves International Isotopes’ I-131 therapeutic agent

Idaho-based International Isotopes has received U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval for its radioactive therapeutic agent used to treat thyroid cancers.

February 11, 2020

Highly touted Alzheimer’s drugs fail to slow cognitive decline

Randall Batemen, MD, principal investigator of the research and a neurologist at Washington University in St. Louis, told the New York Times the results were "really crushing."

February 11, 2020

Around the web

The newly approved AI models are designed to improve the detection of pulmonary embolisms and strokes in patients who undergo CT scans.

"I see, at least for the next decade, this being a SPECT and PET world, not one or the other," explained Tim Bateman, MD.

The FDA-approved technology developed by HeartFlow can predict a patient's long-term risk of target vessel failure as well as more invasive treatments performed inside a cath lab. 

Trimed Popup
Trimed Popup