University of Virginia Health System

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U.VA. INTRODUCES FIRST PET-CT SCANNER IN VIRGINIA

The Department of Radiology at the University of Virginia Health System has introduced a new, state-of-the-art detection and diagnostic service to patients and physicians in Virginia and the mid-Atlantic region.

A new PET-CT scanner, the first machine of its kind in the commonwealth, is now being used to help diagnose cancer and other diseases at U.Va. The scanner is a one-two punch of technology that provides great sensitivity in detecting and locating abnormalities in tissue throughout the body.

“Using PET-CT technology, we can pinpoint precisely where cancer is and detect it early when it’s as small as possible,” said Dr. Patrice Rehm, associate professor of radiology and director of the division of nuclear medicine. “This should make the cancer much easier to treat. Before PET-CT, we’ve had to wait for a tumor to be large enough to be caught by older technology.”

PET, or positron emission tomography, uses radioactive glucose to image the body’s metabolism at the cellular level, mapping the chemical functioning of organs or tissue. Since cancer cells use more glucose than other cells in the body, PET can reveal the presence of cancerous tumors and provide key information about whether cancer has spread, a key component of cancer treatment.

PET also is used to diagnose heart disease and brain disorders, like epilepsy, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. CT, or computed tomography, is used to image a patient’s anatomy and can reveal abnormalities. Used together in one machine, PET-CT combines PET’s early detection of disease with the precise internal organ visualization of CT. The PET-CT procedure is painless and non-invasive and usually takes about half an hour. 

PET-CT was named the Medical Science Invention of the Year by Time magazine in 2000. The entire cost of U.Va.’s PET-CT project is over $2 million. “This exciting addition to patient care at U.Va. should have an impact on patients that we can’t even fathom today,” Rehm said.

6/17/03