What is a PET/CT Scan Oklahoma

What is a PET/CT Scan?

A positron emission tomography scan, also known as PET scan, is an imaging test that helps reveal your tissues and organs' metabolic or biochemical function. The PET scan uses a radioactive drug (tracer) to show normal and abnormal activity. A PET scan can often detect the abnormal metabolism of the tracer in diseases before other imaging tests, such as computerized tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). It helps a doctor diagnose certain health conditions, determine if an existing situation is developing and how, and then plan a treatment or check its effectiveness. Doctors commonly use PET scans for people undergoing cancer treatment or neurological or radiological problems. PET Scan provides 3-dimensional images of the inside of the body. They are used to evaluate organs and/or tissues for the presence of disease or other conditions. The scans are successful and only possible with the help of a tracer that is created fresh in a laboratory.

Today, PET scan is combined with CT scanner as it provides a greater clinical data for the diagnosis. PET scan is unique because it provides images of the radiation emitted from the patient while the CT records anatomical x-rays, showing the same area from another perspective. PET/CT scan is painless, and the scanner itself doesn’t emit radiation. There may be several possible risks of undergoing a PET/CT scan if you are pregnant, obese, or unable to fit into the scanning chamber and others. Even before the scan, the patient must take several precautions for a successful scan.

How is the Tracer Formed?

Tracers are specially designed radioactive molecules and do not come from stockroom shelves, but each one is freshly made at a nearby laboratory. First, the doctor produces radioactivity using Cyclotron, which smashes high-speed particles into ordinary atoms transforming them into new radioactive atoms. The new atoms take some time before they give away their radioactivity and become regular (plain) atoms again. Then the doctor and the team quickly work to build the tracer, a biological molecule in any form like sugar, protein, or hormone. Each one is tailored to a specific function in the body and will show the doctors where that function is taking place. The doctor then runs particular chemical reactions to create a tracer from the drug used in the brain. The new tracer is purified to function appropriately and must pass the test.

The custom-based molecule is created and rushed to the clinic to be mostly injected into the patient’s bloodstream after measuring it at the right amount. The radioactive atom on the tracer loses its radioactivity giving off a subatomic particle called the positron. It is like tiny negatively charged electrons found on all atoms except that it is positively charged. So, when a positron hits an electron at the right speed, they combine and destroy each other. This energy is released as two gamma rays that travel out of the patient’s body in opposite directions. The PET/CT scan is like a doughnut-shaped hole; when the gamma rays are detected, doctors calculate the exact location of the tracer as they have been working on thousands of events every second on the computer. With this, the patient’s brain activity is revealed in three dimensions like no other scan.

At Halo Body Scan in Oklahoma, we understand that it can be overwhelming for a patient to undergo a medical test. They can reel under many emotions before, during, or after the medical examination. Our team has always focused on improving patients’ experiences and providing them best care. Our facility is well-equipped with advanced technology that can help diagnose various conditions. Moreover, our radiologists can present timely results of the scan and recommend how to best move forward to patients. To schedule an appointment at our facility, call us at (405) 477-1100.