Role of Nuclear Medicine in Diagnostic & Therapeutic Aspect

Dr. Parvez Ahmed Center for Nuclear Medicine & Ultrasound, Rajshahi, Bangladesh 25/01/2011

Role of Nuclear Medicine/Molecular medicine/ Molecular imaging & therapeutics

Safest, painless & cost-effective branch of medicine and medical imaging. utilize gamma ray from radionuclides with or without pharmaceutical compounds image disease process at an earlier stage, based on physiology Ablate diseased tissue by beta particle.

John H. Lawrence first use P32 to treat leukemia in 1936

Role of Nuclear Medicine/Molecular medicine/ Molecular imaging & therapeutics

3 Core Components in NM imaging: Radionuclides (relatively short-lived) Gamma camera (used in scintigraphy, SPECT & PET) Computer (Software) Examples of NM Imaging: Organ specific like Brain, Heart, Lung, Liver, Thyroid, Parathyroid etc. Whole body imaging, based on cellular receptors, like whole body PET or PET/CT scan, gallium scan, indium scan, MIBG and octreotide/somatostatin receptor scan.

David E. Kuhl invented the concept of emission & transmission tomography in 1962 which led to design of SPECT,PET, CT & their fusions.

Role of Nuclear Medicine/Molecular medicine/ Molecular imaging & therapeutics

Examples of NM therapy: 131I for hyperthyroidism and thyroid cancer, Yttrium-90(Zevalin) and Iodine131(Bexxar) for refractory Lymphoma, 131I-MIBG for neuroendocrine tumors, Palliative bone pain treatment with Samarium-153 or Strontium-89, Implanted capsules of isotopes (brachytherapy) to treat cancer.

Upper L-PET, Upper R-PET/MRI, Lower-PET/CT (1996) (2008) (2008)