Nuclear medicine

Positron Emission Tomography Positron Emission Tomography is a scanning technique that allows us to measure in detail the functioning of distinct areas of the human brain while the patient is comfortable, conscious and alert. PET represents a type of functional imaging, unlike X-rays or CT scans, which show only structural details within the brain. The differences between these types of imaging don’t end there. In both X-rays and CT scans, a form of radiation is emitted and travels through the

the above criteria while autopsy studies indicate that cardiac involvement is present in up to 25-50% of cases implying that there is a significant proportion of sub-clinical cardiac sarcoidosis not detected with the existing criteria. [1, 7] Nuclear imaging modalities have shown significant advances and rapid growth in the field of the diagnosis and monitoring of cardiac involvement in sarcoidosis. Promising results show high sensitivity for identifying pathophysiological activity at an early

Firstly, the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant leaks radioactive water into underground and to sea. The effect cause earthquake in 2011. After the earth quake on June 2011, scientists measured that 5,000 to 15,000 terabecquerels of radioactive material was reaching the ocean. Since

Positron emission tomography (PET) enables the visualisation of organs and their functionality. PET scans utilise positron-emitting radioactive materials called radioisotopes (also known as radionuclides). Common radioisotopes and their respective half-lives include 11Carbon (~20 minutes), 13Nitrogen (~10 minutes), 15Oxygen (~2 minutes), and 18Fluorine (~110 minutes). These radioisotopes can be incorporated into radiopharmaceuticals (also known as radiotracers) to detect diseases and disorders. These

physician in the Department of Nuclear Medicine. He paved the way for me to realize that this is what I truly want for my future. Due to my mentor, I learned that the field of nuclear medicine emerged in the 1930s, when researchers began producing radioactive phosphorus in a machine called a cyclotron and using it to treat patients with blood disorders. The invention of the nuclear reactor in 1940 enabled scientists to generate nuclear substances (including those used in medicine) with far greater ease.

for lung reduction or transplant surgery. It can evaluate bones for fractures, infection and arthritis, as well as many other things. Lastly is the brain, nuclear medicine techs can investigate abnormalities in the brain in patients with certain symptoms or disorders, such as seizures. These were just a few of the many things a nuclear medicine tech can do, along with determining the presence of cancer, detect rare tumors of the pancreas, the list goes on and on. My modality can do these things and

I am interested in entering the field of Nuclear Medicine Technology because of my father’s medical history. My father was diagnosed in Spring of 2017 with Stage IIB Melanoma. He was accepted into a clinical trial at Emory in Atlanta, GA to hopefully “cure” him. During his clinical trial, he has routine scans that use nuclear medicine technology to be able to see his melanoma sites and the rest of his body at a higher degree then past medical advances would allow. I am one of those patient family

“Radioactive Iodine for Thyroid Cancer” There are approximately 5,000 nuclear medicine centers in the United States. Together, they perform 18 million procedures every year. Nuclear medicine is a branch of medical imaging that uses radioactive material to diagnose, determine the severity of an illness and treat a variety of diseases. An example of nuclear medicine is the use of radioactive iodine to treat hyperthyroidism or thyroid cancer.The use of radioiodine is the most common hyperthyroid

Iodine is reduced by 50%, however, the other 50% does not become part of Iodine-131 because it becomes stable. The radioisotope has 53 protons and 78 neutrons in total. It has a blackish colour to it. Its chemical form is a water-soluble salt. The nuclear decay equation is 131/53I → 131/54Xe + 0/-1E. The radioisotope’s mass number is 131 and its atomic symbol is I131. The radioisotope is a gamma and beta emitting isotope. Furthermore, the beta emission is the destructive component of the radioisotope

Radioisotope studies are also called nuclear medicine. Radioisotope studies use radiation to provide diagnostic information about the functioning of a person's specific organs, or to treat them. Most nuclear medicine procedures are performed by injecting a radioisotope into a vein and based on the type of study, different radioisotopes can be used. After injected, the radioisotopes travel through the blood vessels and they become concentrated in the organ being tested. When concentration occurs,