Okay, so what's a PET scan? When it comes to diagnosing and monitoring cancer, doctors rely on advanced imaging techniques to gain a clearer picture of what’s happening inside the body. One such tool is the Positron Emission Tomography (PET) (Ooohh don't i sound clever!) scan , a powerful medical imaging test that helps detect cancer and evaluate its progression. What is a PET Scan? A PET scan is a type of nuclear medicine imaging that uses a small amount of radioactive material, known as a tracer , to highlight areas of high metabolic activity in the body. Since cancer cells tend to grow and divide more rapidly than normal cells, they absorb the tracer at a higher rate, making them stand out in the scan images. How Does a PET Scan Work? Injection of the Tracer – A radioactive tracer, usually fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) , is injected into the patient’s bloodstream. Absorption by Cells – The tracer circulates throughout the body and is absorbed by tissues based on their metabol...
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