 | Joseph P. Galichia, MD is the founder and Medical Director of the Galichia Medical Group, PA. He is an internationally recognized pioneer in the field of interventional cardiology. In the 70's, Dr. Galichia studied in Zurich, Switzerland with the inventors of the balloon angioplasty technique for treating heart disease. As a result of his experience, he was able to bring this historic technique back to the United States where he was one of the first physicians to perform coronary angioplasty here. A noted medical spokesman, he appears on a weekly Newstalk segment on KWCH Channel 12 and has a weekly syndicated radio talk show on KNSS 1330 AM every Saturday live from 11:00 am to noon. Dr. Galichia may be contacted by sending an e-mail to service@galichia.com |
Health & Medicine
2004-05-01 08:19:00
What is a PET scan?
: What is a PET scan and what is its use?
ANSWER: Positron Emission Tomography (PET) is a non-invasive early detection medical diagnostic imaging technology. It is currently used for the detection of certain cancers, cardiac disease and neurological disorders. This technology enables doctors to diagnose and accurately stage life-threatening diseases earlier, often enabling them to forego more expensive, more invasive procedures. This technology is relatively old, having first been developed in l973. This scanning technique looks at the metabolism of cells in the body, and is especially useful in identifying cells that have increased cellular activity, such as cancer cells. Using PET imaging, for instance, may identify a mass, which shows up on a chest x-ray or a CAT scan as either a cancer, or a benign tumor. Furthermore, many patients with known cancer may have spread of the disease to other parts of the body, but without evidence on an x-ray or other more conventional scan. Knowing that the cancer has spread may avoid costly and painful biopsy procedures. Redirecting the therapy is a major contribution gained from this technology.PET technology also has value in treating cardiac patients. The process of identifying tissue that is alive, or demonstrating ongoing cellular activity, helps the cardiologist to know if he is dealing with scar tissue from an old heart attack or tissue that is still alive. Knowing that we are dealing with viable heart muscle enables us to make better decisions regarding bypass surgery or doing a balloon or stent to better supply the area with blood. Doing the procedure is risk free and painless, but does add significantly to the cost of analyzing the patients problems. Recently there has been a lot of interest in using PET scanning in the early phases of Alzheimer's disease. This diagnosis is often difficult to make and there is no specific test for it. Many neurologists feel that the diagnosis can be made earlier and more accurately from the PET scan. PET scanning for ruling out Alzheimer's disease is not yet covered by the insurance or Medicare but is currently under review by these payers.The use of PET scanning is growing rapidly and provides a new frontier in earlier and more accurate diagnosis of many problems. We will learn a great deal more in the next few years regarding this exciting addition to our analysis of patients with a wide array of medical problems.
