What do you understand by PET scan and CT Scan?
PET – Positron Emission Tomography
PET is the visualization of physiological function in body areas. It is letting know about the function of the diseased tissues which may be different from normal tissues. The patient is given strong radioactive traders. The high concentration of traders creates signals that are picked up by the scanner. The traders have a very short half-life making their use safe. The tracers throw positive electrons, which emit a signal when they come in contact with electrons.
CT- Computer Tomography
In this, the scanner takes a continuous series of cross-sectional pictures of the body part to be scanned which can be compared to the slicing of an apple from one end to the other. At each slice in a series, one can point out which part of the apple is rotten. So, if we scan the affected part of a patient, the computer brings out several slices from one end to the other. Looking at these pictures, any deviation from the normal anatomy can be detected easily.
Benefits Of Pet Ct Scan
- Detecting and diagnosing life-threatening diseases like cancer, heart problems, brain disorders and problems associated with the central nervous system.
- Differentiating between benign and malignant tumours.
- Locating cancer (size and stage)
- Detecting if cancer is static or malignantly spreading to the other organs.
- Treatment strategy and observe the progress of the treatment of cancer.
- Checking whether the patient is responding to the present treatment.
- Finding if cancer has returned post-treatment.
- It also helps in diagnosing chronic diseases like coronary artery disease, brain tumours, and memory disorders like Alzheimer’s and seizures.
Indications of PET-CT
- Staging of cancer that is to be treated.
- Establish baseline cancer staging before the treatment starts.
- Analysis of an indeterminate lesion.
- Assessing whether therapy is working or not.
- Evaluation of suspected recurrence of disease, relapse and/or residual disease.
- guiding a biopsy.
Types of PET-CT Scan
- Whole Body PET Scan: Whole Body 18F-FDG PET CT Scan (18F-Fluoro Deoxy Glucose). The most common scan and comprises 90% PET-CT
- For Prostate: PSMA (Prostate-Specific Membrane Antigen) PET-CT scan. PSMA is better at localizing cases of prostate cancer.
- For Neuro-Endocrine Tumors: DOTA PET-CT scan. DOTA is for localizing cases of NETs (Neuro Endocrine Tumors) as compared to Whole Body FDG PET Scan.
- For Abdomen: Whole Body FDG PET-CT with Triple Phase CT Upper Abdomen
- For Cardiac Viability – Cardiac PET-CT (FDG PET CT scan + Cardiac Test Component on a Gamma Camera)
Preparation and Steps Before Your PET-CT Scan
Preparation is required in the case of the following:
- Current medications. Bring a list of all the medications, and any vitamins or supplements. Ask if you should keep taking them before the scan.
- Any allergies or other medical conditions.
- Diabetic patients.
- Breastfeeding mothers or pregnant women.
- Claustrophobic people.
- Sign a form that talks about the risks and benefits of a PET-CT scan.
- Avoid exercising 24 hours before the scan.
- Follow a special diet for 12 to 24 hours before the scan.
- Don’t drink or eat anything, except water, for 6 hours before the scan.
Diet Recommendations
Follow a strict low-carbohydrate diet for 24 hours before the test.
The following food is allowed:
- All meats
- Poultry
- Hard cheese
- Eggs
- Butter
- Non-starchy vegetables like spinach, broccoli, and green beans -Oil
- Nuts and unsweetened peanut butter
- Margarine
- Diet soda and zero-calorie drinks
Avoid the following foods:
- Bread
- Rice
- Milk
- Yoghurt
- Jams and jellies
- Cereals
- Pasta
- Dry beans
- Nutritional shakes or smoothies
- Fruits and fruit juices
- Starchy vegetables like corn, peas, and potatoes
- Gravies
- Sugar, desserts, honey or candy
- Coffee or tea
- Caffeinated or decaffeinated drinks
- Alcohol
Steps Just Before PET-CT Scan
- Wear comfortable clothes; a hospital gown.
- Remove anything that contains metal, such as eyeglasses, dentures, or hearing aids during the test.
- An intravenous (IV) line will be placed into a vein. The patient will then receive an injection of a radioactive substance called a radiotracer or tracer.
- May also receive a special dye called a contrast medium before the scan to make the images clear.
- When the substance has travelled all over your body, it will be time to start the scan. Most people are asked to lie on their backs on the exam table. But position depends on where in the body the doctor wants to scan.
During the PET-CT Scan
- A scanning device is a large machine doughnut-shaped with a hole in the middle. When the examination starts, the table slides quickly through the hole. This first pass shows the technologist if the patient is in the right body position to get the needed images.
- Then, the table slides slowly back and forth. Patients will be asked to stay still.
- Sometimes, you may be asked to hold your breath. This prevents blurry pictures from the movement of your body breathing. The technician might raise, lower, or tilt the table during the scan. This helps get pictures from different angles.
After a PET-CT Scan
- Can return to your usual diet and activities.
- Advised to drink lots of water as it helps in washing any leftover radioactive substances and dyes out of the body.
- The scan results will be interpreted by the nuclear medicine physician and/or a radiologist and then forwarded to the concerned doctor.
Risk Involved in Pet-CT Scan
- The diagnostic centres must be approved and certified by ISO, NABH and NABL. If not, they might cause harmful impacts on patients, doctors and technicians.
- The scan needs to be taken only when it is needed as it may lead to stress and anxiety and can also give a wrong diagnosis resulting in unnecessary tests.
- Multiple PET-CT scans increase the exposure of a patient to a high degree of radiation. These radiations cause cancer. Hence, physicians don’t prescribe them usually.
- Contraindicative if you are pregnant or breastfeeding.
- Patients with a high level of creatinine in their body and having renal diseases should avoid it.
- The solution injected may cause allergic reactions.
- Claustrophobic patients face some discomfort during and after the scan.
Pet-Ct Scan Cost in Delhi Ncr
The actual cost of PET-CT in Delhi is between INR 10,000 to 35,000 depending upon the specific body part or whole-body PET-CT scan. Bookings of PET-CT scan for cancer in Delhi NCR at an affordable and best-discounted price of around INR 11,000 can be done at YASHODA CANCER INSTITUTE, SANJAY NAGAR, GHAZIABAD.
Specialists For Pet-Ct Scan At Yashoda Hospital, Nehru Nagar, Ghaziabad
Dr. Hitesh Aggarwal is the consultant & head, PET-CT & Nuclear Medicine at Yashoda Hospital & Research Centre, Nehru Nagar, Ghaziabad. He specialises in all kinds of PET-CT scans, radioiodine therapies as well as scintigraphy.
Dr. Shuchi Ghai
DR. Shuchi Ghai has experience of more than 7 years and speciality in cytotechniques & histotechniques, bone marrow aspiration, gastrointestinal biopsies, haematological malignancies & flow cytometry
PET-CT Scan at Yashoda Hospital, Nehru Nagar, Ghaziabad
Yashoda Hospital, Nehru Nagar, Ghaziabad is committed to delivering quality lifesaving and healthcare practices for all. A full range of treatment options, including standard and experimental treatments are available. Also, it aims at providing the best and most affordable pricing and cost for PET-CT scans in Delhi NCR, you can book an appointment online. Yashoda Hospital has an excellent facility for PET-CT scans. Right from the diagnosis, evaluation, and management of illness and various malignant cancers, all treatments are available. Yashoda Hospital ensures the utmost level of precision with accuracy. We not only diagnose with precision but provide adequate treatment and care, simultaneously. The hospital has a huge team of doctors as well as expert technicians holding years of expertise in their profession.