How is PET-CT performed?
For PET / CT procedures, the patient needs to be hungry for at least 6 hours. First, the blood sugar of the patient is measured. If the blood sugar is within the desired limits, the radioactive material is injected from the vein. F-18 fluorodeoxyglucose is the most commonly used radioactive substances, with a variety. This is a sugar molecule bound to the radioactive name Flor-18. Following the injection, the patient is kept waiting for about an hour for the drug to dissolve. The PET / CT device is then withdrawn.
Other materials used PET-CT are F-18 NaF for imaging bones, Ga-68 PSMA for the investigation of prostate cancer spread, Ga-68 Octerotid for the investigation of neuroendocrine tumors. Apart from these, there are many radiopharmaceuticals that are not used in the routine.
PET-CT significantly increases success in combating cancer in many stages from the detection of cancerous tis- sue to treatment planning to evaluation of treatment success through the planning of radiation therapy.
PET / CT is utilized in all stages of cancer diagnosis and treatment
The most important difference of cancerous cells from normal cells is their rapid and uncontrolled proliferation. The energy requirements of high-activity cells are also normal. When substances such as sugar, protein and certain building blocks used by cancer cells in this process are radioactively labeled and displayed, the location of cancerous tissues can be detected. The PET / CT device operates on the basis of this logic.
PET / CT, which directs cancer treatment, is used in the following stages of diagnosis and treatment;
Cancer is of particular use in determining the metabolism of the touch
It is diagnosed by PET-CT that the masses detected by various imaging methods show cancer metabolism. If the kit is PET-CT positive, this mass consumes too much glucose and is more likely to be cancerous.
Detection of cancer from the right tissue from the suspicious tissue
Cancerous tissue can cause damage to its structure due to uncontrolled proliferation. Adequate cells can not be obtained from tissue samples to be removed from the damaged area, PET / CT shows intense areas of viable cells, and biopsy is a guide.
Assessment of cancer prevalence
PET / CT technology has been successfully used in many types of cancer for the purpose of evaluating the disease prevalence (staging) at first stage after being diagnosed with cancer.
Determination of treatment approach
On average, the treatment approach is changing in one of three patients after this examination. Sometimes, instead of a heavy surgical treatment, medication can be performed and an unnecessary surgery can be prevented. In some cases, PET / CT may lead to a decision to remove cancerous tissue by surgery rather than to discourage drug treatment, suggesting that there is no spread in the patient, which is thought to be distant metastases.
Early detection of cancer drug benefit
Side effects of cancer drugs are medications that should be considered. Use of the appropriate medication will save you from unnecessary side effects as well as have the chance to prevent the disease by medication with cancerous tissue and early intervention. The evaluation of the treatment with PET / CT after the 1st or 2nd course of treatment gives information about the usefulness of the medicine.
Determination of treatment response
The response to cancer drug with PET / CT can be evaluated both numerically and quantitatively by structural changes and intensity of cellular activity. After the treatment is completed, the effectiveness of the treatment can be determined by investigating the presence of a live cancer cell. PET-CT is the earliest imaging system that displays the response to treatment.
Beam treatment plan
Live tumor cell areas that will be irradiated in radiotherapy or radiation treatment can provide a more accurate and effective treatment with PET / CT mapping and can reduce the side effects by preventing unnecessary radiation to healthy tissues.
Early detection of recurrent disease
After the cures are completed, patients are followed up with methods such as ultrasound and tomography and blood tests. If suspicious cases occur in these methods, live cancer cells reappear and the prevalence is successfully determined by PET / CT method.