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Nuclear Medicine is an excellent diagnostic tool because it shows not only the
anatomy or structure of an organ or body part, but the function of that organ
as well. This additional "functional information" allows the radiologist to
diagnose certain diseases and various medical conditions much sooner than other
modalities. Nuclear medicine can be valuable in the early diagnosis, treatment
and prevention of numerous medical conditions and continues to grow as a powerful
medical tool.
Nuclear Medicine uses small amounts of radioactive material to diagnose, and
sometimes treat, diseases. Radiotracers are usually, but not always, given to
a patient in the form of an intravenous injection. Images of where the radiotracer
is in the body and how long it stays there are made using a special camera, called
a nuclear medicine gamma camera. These cameras work in conjunction with computers
used to form images that provide data and information about the area of the body
being imaged. The images generated can show if organs are working properly or
not depending if the radiotracers are absorbed by, or taken up, at varying rates,
or in different concentrations, by different tissue types. For example, cells
which are dividing rapidly, like cancer tissue cells may be seen as "hot spots" on
nuclear medicine images, since they absorb more of the radiotracers. |
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