Positron Emission Tomography (PET) is a type of medical scan that helps doctors see how the body is working at a cellular level.
PET is especially useful in detecting diseases like cancer, heart problems (cardiovascular disease) and brain disorders (neurodegenerative disease like Alzheimer’s), in greater detail, through less invasive means, and at an earlier stage.
Unlike other types of medical scan which show the structures of tissues and organs in the body (i.e. MRI, X-Ray, Ultrasound), PET scans show how tissues and organs are functioning, and by understanding the function of disease, doctors can:
Before the scan, a small amount of a safe and mildly radioactive drug (called a radiotracer) is injected into the body. The radiotracer is designed to highlight specific tissues and organs, and different radiotracers are selected depending upon the condition the patient is being scanned for. The patient is then receiving the PET scan, and the radiotracer is detected from outside the body.
PET-CT scanning is one of the fundamental services the Daisy Appeal has funded. This ground breaking science helps NHS clinicians diagnose cancer, heart disease and dementia but how does it actually work? Watch this short video provided by the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB) to find out.
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