Australian study identifies new cancer scan technique Jul 28, 2009
The radioactive tracer called FLT was injected into the patients where it temporarily binds to cells that are rapidly dividing, to highlight them during a scan. Five lung cancer patients took part in the initial study, during which scans were conducted over more than a year, and the promising results will see a broader follow-up study involving 20 patients. (Xinhuanet, China)
Cardinal, OSU join forces on radioactive drug research Apr 30, 2009
PET, or positron emission tomography, detects the gamma rays emitted by the radioactive tracer drugs. The goal is to develop agents that can help diagnose diseases at the earliest stages when they re easiest to treat, and to make surgeries to remove tumors more targeted and less harmful. (Columbus Business First, OH)
Imaging technique may trace development of Parkinson's disease Mar 25, 2009
Determining loss of dopaminergic neurons using conventional methods such as metabolic PET scans is expensive, invasive, and requires injection of radioactive tracer chemicals. But the method studied by Vaillancourt and his group is non-invasive, relatively inexpensive, and does not use radioactive tracers. (EurekAlert!)
Ongoing worldwide shortage of medical isotopes could threaten patient care, says expert Mar 19, 2009
Technetium-99m (Tc-99m) is used as a radioactive tracer in nuclear medicine investigations such as gamma cameras, which allow doctors to see inside a patient's body to track down damaged organs and tissues and diagnose a range of life threatening diseases, including cancer, heart problems and renal failure. Globally, nuclear medicine investigations are the second most common diagnostic imaging procedure after x-ray CT and more than 28 million procedures are carried out each year using Tc-99m. (EurekAlert! -- Business News)
