What is PET?
Positron emission tomography (PET) is a highly sensitive technology that generates three-dimensional images of biochemical changes too subtle to discover by other means. It is extremely useful in detecting and treating cancer, neurological disorders and heart conditions. PET scans, which superbly document chemical and functional changes in organs, can be particularly useful when they are digitally combined with the anatomical images generated by computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). For example, a neurologist can see the exact location in the brain where a seizure originated; an oncologist can determine which parts of a tumor are growing the fastest. Children’s Hospital Boston is the only facility in New England that has a PET scanner dedicated solely to children.
PET is short for Positron Emission Tomography. PET is a non-invasive diagnostic procedure, which involves the injection of a radioactive tracer that can be visualized by a special camera that detects radioactivity. Images from the camera are stored on computers and are processed to evaluate organ anatomy and function.
Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET or PETE) is a clear, tough plastic with good gas and moisture barrier properties. Commonly used in soft drink bottles and many injection molded consumer product containers. Other applications include strapping and both food and non-food containers. Cleaned, recycled PET flakes and pellets are in great demand for spinning fiber for carpet yarns, producing fiberfill and geo-textiles.
Positron Emission Tomography (PET) produces images of molecular-level physiological functioning, which can help physician identify normal and abnormal states. As in traditional nuclear medicine, PET uses radiopharmceuticals or “tracers,” which are labeled with isotopes such as carbon, oxygen, nitrogen and fluorine. These isotopes mimic sugars, water, proteins and oxygen. As a result, PET can often reveal more about the cellular-level metabolic status of a disease than the CT or MR. PET can help diagnose a disease often before it shows up on other tests. PET can also show the progress of a disease as well as how the body is responding to treatment. Current Applications The three areas in which PET is making critical contributions are: 1. Oncology: lung cancer, breast cancer, testicular and ovarian cancer, recurrent colorectal cancer, lymphoma, melanoma, recurrent brain tumors, tumor-therapy monitoring, and assessing effectiveness of treatments such as chemotherapy. 2. Cardiology: corona
Positron Emission Tomography (PET) is a non-invasive, diagnostic imaging technique that can detect certain diseases before other modalities like computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). PET/CT is unique because it produces images of metabolic function; in particular, it shows how glucose is used metabolically by the brain, heart and certain cancers, and can detect physiological changes of organs. CT and MRI are unlike PET because they are used to detect structural changes in the body. This is important because functional change, as it relates to metabolic activity, often predates structural change in tissues and organs. PET/CT images may therefore demonstrate the existence of disease long before it would be revealed by modalities like CT and MRI.
