Jump to content

New Machine for Radiology


RandyW

Recommended Posts

New Machine Targets Cancer

Reported by: Katie Burcham - WMBD/WYZZ TV

Tuesday, Jan 22, 2008 @04:27pm CST

WMBD/WYZZ TV - NORMAL -- 55 year-old Alvin Mardis is taking what may be the most important test of his life. Mardis says, "So I went to the hospital and I told the nurse when she checked me in, I either got pneumonia or lung cancer."

Turns out, Alvin was right. Last month he was diagnosed with lung cancer. Today he'll learn what stage his cancer is in, and how big his battle will be.

X-ray technician Rae Anne Robertson says, "If you catch it in a later stage then it's a lot harder to treat and the prognosis isn't as good, so we want to catch things as early as possible."

That is something this new machine is very good at. It's a hybrid diagnostic scanner. It fuses CT scan and PET scan technology to create a complete picture of Alvin's cancer. The CT scan tells where the tumor is, and the PET scan shows what it looks like.

It's like giving doctors a bullseye, and then a gun to shoot at it. Robertson says, "With the PET scan you're gonna see that activity, it's gonna light up, it's like a lightbulb turns on."

It is a newer, more exact science than oncologists had in the past. Doctors are using it to determine doses of radiation when planning treatments. That means patients like Alvin won't suffer as many side effects, and will benefit from a little more peace of mind.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Restore formatting

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use.