For Immediate Release
August, 27, 2001
Contact: Maria Ramos
(219) 865-2141, ext. 45321
Maria.Ramos@ssfhs.org

Saint Margaret Mercy Healthcare Centers -- in a joint venture with its sister hospitals, St. Anthony Medical Center in Crown Point, Ind., and St. Anthony Memorial Health Centers in Michigan City, Ind -- recently introduced the latest in PET technology. The new Siemens Accel Positron Emission Tomography (PET) system is one of only three of its kind in the United States.

PET is a medical imaging procedure that provides physicians with information about the body’s chemistry, cell function and location of disease. PET allows the physician to examine the whole patient at once, by producing pictures of the functions of the human body unobtainable by other imaging techniques.

“PET images are different than those from more conventional imaging equipment, such as X-ray, CT, ultrasound or MRI,” says Walter Grzych, manager, Imaging Services at Saint Margaret Mercy. “These images show what the tissues look like. PET images contain information about tissue function.”

Whole-body PET imaging uncovers abnormalities that might otherwise go undetected and thereby guides physicians to the most appropriate treatment.

According to Dr. Marcus Lee, some radiology experts predict that along with CT and MRI, PET scan will become one of the pillars of imaging departments in the 21st century. Dr. Lee is a board-certified diagnostic radiologist on staff at Saint Margaret Mercy.

PET imaging is most commonly to used to assist with the diagnosis of cancer, Parkinson’s Disease, epilepsy, Alzheimer’s Disease and other dementias.

The scan is accurate in showing the presence or spread of many malignant tumors. For example, it is more accurate in detecting the spread of lung cancer and colon cancer than any other imaging method currently available. A high degree of accuracy also has been demonstrated in evaluating recurrent breast cancer, melanoma, lymphoma, ovarian cancer, brain cancer, pancreatic cancer and tumors of the head and neck.

How does the procedure work?

To begin the procedure, a small amount of radioactive glucose is injected into the patient’s bloodstream.

“There is no danger from the injection,” says Grzych. “Glucose (known as sugar) is a common substance every cell in the body needs in order to function. Radioactive glucose must pass multiple quality control measures before it is used for any patient injection.

“The radiation exposure associated with PET is similar to that associated with a conventional CT scan,” Grzych says.

As the injected material is distributed throughout the body and processed by the organ being studied, the PET scanner detects the radioactivity and shows it as an image on a video screen. The images reveal information about the chemistry and function of that organ.

The scan can be performed in less than an hour as an outpatient procedure. The studies are interpreted shortly after the PET scan is completed, with reports sent to the patient’s referring physician.

For more information on Positron Emission Tomography, call:

• St. Anthony Medical Center at 219-757-6307,
  
  
• St. Anthony Memorial Health Centers at 219-877-1568, or
  
  
• Saint Margaret Mercy Healthcare Centers at 219-933-2635.