All About The Diagnostic PET Scan

A Positron emission tomography scan is a diagnostic imaging technique that uses an injectable radioactive tracer  to produce images. The scanned images can show cellular or metabolic activity. This cellular activity status can help diagnose diseases like cancer. The scan images can also be used to assess heart and brain issues. The PET scan detects the earliest signs of cellular dysfunction, thereby detecting cancer in its early stages. 

Uses Of PET Scan

 The PET scan  can be used to check for the signs of

• Different types of cancers-
  • Including cancer of breast, 
  • Thyroid cancer, 
  • Lung cancer
  • Cancer of other soft tissues.
• Heart conditions such as in –
  • Coronary artery diseases, 
  • Heart attack, etc
• For diagnosing brain disorders such as –
  • Brain tumours
  • Brain cancers
  • Epilepsy
  • Dementia
  • Alzheimer’s disease
• Most commonly used to
  • Check the spread of cancer, which in turn helps making the treatment plan 
  • To evaluate if the cancer treatment is working well.
• It can be used to check for any cancer recurrence eg: metastasis or secondary cancer. 
• It can be used to determine if the heart muscles would benefit from procedures such as angioplasty or coronary artery bypass surgery. 

During the PET Scan

• You will be placed with a catheter for the radiotracer administration
• The radioactive contrast dye is a fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG).
• You will need to wait for sometime until the tracers absorbed in the body cells
• You will be asked to lie on the scan table 
• The scan table then slides into the donut shaped scanner 
• You need to lie still during the scanning procedure, any movement during the scan can blur out the scanned images.
• Once the scanning is completed, the scanning table slides out of the scanner machine.

What Are The Risks Associated With PET Scan?

The PET scan is generally conducted by a trained professional and under safety guidelines. The scanning uses a radioactive tracer which may stay in your boofy for a few hours although it  can be flushed out of your body at a faster rate by drinking plenty of water

PET can pose risks in certain conditions-

• Pregnancy
• Breastfeeding

PET scan contrast medium can cause allergic reaction which may represent as

• Nausea
• Itching
• Redness
• Swelling
• Dizziness
• Vomiting 
• Light headedness

If you have certain diseases, you might get complications due to contrast medium like

• Diabetes
• Kidney disorders etc

Conclusion

A PET scan is a painless and useful scanning technique. It is mostly used for screening and treatment planning of cancer. If you have been pre-diagnosed of some condition and worried, choose the best PET Scan centre near you to get yourself diagnosed on time for better prognosis.