PET is used to help diagnose and treat a number of different diseases, including cancer, coronary heart disease and seizure disorders. In cancer applications, PET provides tumor imaging and has proven to be very accurate in identifying the extent of malignant disease.

PET stands for Positron Emission Tomography. It is a procedure that produces powerful images of the human body's biological functions. PET scans are safe and can be performed in a few hours as an outpatient procedure.

When you arrive for your PET scan, you will be registered by our office personnel and taken to the PET area. There, a technologist will ask you a series of questions regarding your medical history. Next, a small blood sample will be taken to check your blood sugar (glucose) level. The technologist will then inject a small amount of radioactive glucose into your bloodstream. This glucose is called a "tracer" and will be distributed throughout your body via your bloodstream. (There is no danger to you from this injection, as radioactive glucose must pass multiple quality control measures before it is used for any patient injection. In fact, the radiation exposure associated with PET is similar to that of a conventional CT scan.)

You can expect to be in the PET center for one-and-a-half to three hours. The actual scan itself takes far less time and depends on the purpose and type of the study. In most cases, a body scan from the chin to the pelvis area takes about 50 to 60 minutes. Some exams, such as brain or heart procedures, take a matter of 30 minutes to complete.

You should feel fine after the scan. There are no side effects from the tracer injection. If you have a heart scan, you may feel flushed afterwards.

PET is very accurate in showing the presence or spread of a variety of many malignant tumors. For example, it is more accurate in detecting the spread of lung cancer and colon cancer than any other imaging method currently available. A high dose of accuracy has also been demonstrated in evaluating recurrent breast cancer, melanoma, lymphoma, ovarian cancer, brain cancer, pancreatic cancer, and tumors of the head and neck.

The results of your PET scan are read shortly after the scan is completed. You can expect a verbal report to be available to your physician within a day of the scan.

It is important that your other recent x-ray studies (such as CT or MRI scans) be available for the PET imaging doctor to compare them directly to your PET scan. Your doctor or hospital may send the films and reports from these studies to the PET center or you may be asked to bring them with you to prevent delay in reading your PET scan.