Positronium imaging with the novel multiphoton PET scanner.

Area of Science:

• Medical Imaging
• Nuclear Medicine
• Biophysics

Background:

• Accurate in vivo cancer assessment and early detection of molecular disorders are critical diagnostic challenges.
• Positronium formation during positron emission tomography (PET) is influenced by molecular environments, suggesting its potential for disease monitoring.
• Current PET technology cannot acquire positronium images, limiting its diagnostic application.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a new method for positronium imaging.
• To enable simultaneous registration of annihilation and deexcitation photons for enhanced imaging.
• To demonstrate the feasibility of positronium imaging for disease detection.

Main Methods:

• Developed a novel method for simultaneous registration of annihilation and deexcitation photons.
• Utilized pharmaceuticals labeled with radionuclides for imaging.
• Applied the method to image a phantom composed of cardiac myxoma and adipose tissue.

Main Results:

• Successfully demonstrated the first in vivo positronium imaging of a biological phantom.
• The new method allows for the visualization of molecular spaces where positronium forms.
• Positronium properties correlate with the molecular environment, offering disease-specific information.

Conclusions:

• Positronium imaging is a feasible technique with the potential to significantly improve PET diagnostic specificity.
• This method could provide crucial information about disease progression at the molecular level.
• Future applications may include early cancer detection and monitoring of molecular disorders.