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Total Body PET
Laura Providência1, Charalampos Tsoumpas1, Adriaan A Lammertsma2
1Department of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.
Total body positron emission tomography (PET) offers enhanced sensitivity, enabling shorter scans and wider patient accessibility. This advanced imaging technology facilitates non-invasive quantification and opens new research avenues in oncology.
Area of Science:
- Medical Imaging
- Nuclear Medicine
- Oncology
Background:
- Conventional PET scanners have limited axial coverage.
- Total body PET (long axial field-of-view PET) significantly expands this coverage.
- This expansion offers a substantial gain in system sensitivity.
Purpose of the Study:
- To provide a comprehensive overview of total body PET systems.
- To explore their theoretical underpinnings and clinical applications in oncology.
- To discuss underexplored areas and future possibilities.
Main Methods:
- Utilizes long axial field-of-view PET scanners.
- Enables dynamic scanning of most of the body in a single bed position.
- Facilitates non-invasive quantification of organs within the field-of-view.
Main Results:
- Increased sensitivity allows for shorter scanning times or lower injected activities.
- Expanded patient groups can benefit, including children, pregnant women, and ICU patients.
- Enables novel research in areas like organ-axes and multi-tracer PET.
Conclusions:
- Total body PET enhances imaging accessibility and efficiency.
- It offers significant potential for advancing oncology research and clinical practice.
- Further exploration of its capabilities is warranted.
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