PET Scans Could Predict Treatment Outcomes In Cancer

Malik Juweid, M.D., associate professor of radiology at the University of Iowa Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine, says that using positron emission tomography (PET) technology can help doctors gauge the response of a cancer to the treatment being provided.

Juweid and co-author Bruce Cheson, M.D., of the Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center at Georgetown University Hospital have explained about the extended usage of PET n gauging the response of the tumor in the February 2 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine. The report says that increasing the use of PET imaging will improve the delivery of cancer care. The PET radiotracer fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) is absorbed more actively by tumor cells and it is this characteristic that could make it very useful in assessing the impact of treatment on cancer.