Positron Emission Tomography in oncology: present and future of PET and PET/CT

PET is a crucial technique in molecular imaging, allowing in vivo assessment and localization of pathological processes, thanks to its ability to detect very small amounts of radioactive molecules. This is of particular interest in oncology where abnormal metabolism or synthesis in tumor cells but also various tumor characteristics can be studied using this nuclear medicine technique. FDG is currently the most widely used tracer, nowadays essential in the management of various malignancies, with large applications in diagnosis, initial assessment, therapy monitoring, and recurrence detection. The combination of anatomical information provided by PET/CT further increased its interest. Beyond its spread use in daily practice, future applications of PET will involve other tracers than FDG and develop research applications in humans as well as in small animals.