PET/CT scans assist diagnosing cancer, staging cancer and following treatment. PET/CT scans also help diagnose and manage a variety of non-cancerous conditions such as heart and brain conditions.
What Is A PET CT Scan?
A positron emission tomography (PET) scan is a distinct imaging test that demonstrates your organ and tissue activity. The test uses an injectable radioactive material, which is a safe substance called a radiotracer, as well as a device called a PET scanner.
The activity of diseased cells will statistically show up as a collection of radiotracer that may suggest a concern for your health.
PET scans are routinely used by health professionals for diagnosing and following certain types of cancer treatments. PET scans may also be used for the evaluation of specific conditions of the brain and the heart.
When Would I Need A PET Scan?
In most instances, a PET scan provides the ability to evaluate a functional, quantitative scale, which includes blood flow, blood sugar (glucose) metabolism and oxygen use.
If your doctor suspects you may have cancer, they’ll more than likely order a PET scan, because it’s able to diagnose and/or stage cancers.
If you already have a cancer diagnosis, your provider may recommend a few more PET scans during your treatment for the following reasons.
Infectious And Inflammatory Diseases
Infections: Can localize sources of fever of unknown origin, abscesses or infections in bones (osteomyelitis), and infective sources related to prosthetic devices.
Inflamed processes: Helps evaluate diseases such as sarcoidosis, vasculitis, and some autoimmune diseases. The PET-CT will show the location of inflammation as increased metabolic activity in areas where there is likely inflamed tissue.
Conclusion
Cancer diagnosis and management is what the PET-CT scan is designed for primarily; however, the potential benefits of PET-CT extends well beyond oncology. It is a versatile investigation tool that provides benefit to many areas- cardiology, neurology, infectious disease and many others. Given that it provides both structural and functional observations of cellular activity, PET-CT permits clinicians to diagnose, stage and measure multiple processes associated with multiple conditions, providing significant contributions to modern medicine.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q. What is a PET scan used for other than cancer?
PET scans are fairly common in the detection and management of cancer; they are also often used themselves to diagnose and manage other diseases and disorders especially in the area of neurology and cardiology.
Q. What is the most common diagnosis for a PET scan?
PET (Positron Emission Tomography) scans are used most often for diagnosis and monitoring of cancer. PET scans are not, in general, for cancer diagnosis and management: to geographically locate enticing/ measuring effectiveness of treatment and detecting recurrecnociaousore cancers. PET scans, anaemia and cardiac conditions but most often, adoptive treatment and determining valuational difficulty
Q. Can PET-CT confirm cancer?
There is no question PET-CT or Positron Emission Tomography-Computed Tomography is a powerful part of assessing cancer, developing a treatment plan for a patient or a follow-up to see if the treatment is working.
Q. What is the biggest disadvantage in using a PET scan?
The main disadvantage of a PET scan is the amount of radiation exposure from the radioactive tracer administered during the procedure. The measurement of the radiation dose from the tracer is low and considered “safe.”
Q. Can a positive PET scan be anything but cancer?
Yes, a positive PET scan can be positive for other reasons besides cancer.
Q. Where to get the best PET scan in Delhi?
If you’re searching for PET scan in Delhi, contact carebox or directly visit.
