Nuclear Medicine, PET, and SPECT Imaging Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards covering key concepts from the lecture on PET scans, SPECT scans, radioisotope production, cancer diagnostics, and nuclear medicine principles.

SPECT Scan

Single photon emission computed tomography; an imaging technique that uses single gamma ray emitting tracers to produce cross-sectional and three-dimensional images, providing lower resolution and greater accessibility at a lower cost.

PET Scan

Positron emission tomography; an imaging technique using positron emitting tracers where two gamma rays are emitted in opposite directions when a positron collides with an electron, offering higher resolution and faster imaging.

Molybdenum-99

A radioactive material produced by bombarding uranium with neutrons in nuclear reactors, which is used in nuclear medicine generators to produce technetium.

Cyclotron

A specialized device used in medical facilities to produce the specific radioisotopes required for PET and SPECT imaging, operating differently than a nuclear reactor.

Glucose-Tagged Radioisotopes

Radioisotopes attached to sugar molecules used in PET and SPECT scanning to detect cancer, as cancerous tissues require sugar, blood, and oxygen to grow and thus absorb the tracer.

Biopsy

A procedure performed after identifying a tumor to confirm if it is cancerous and to identify the specific type of cancer to select the appropriate treatment modality.

Benign Acting Cancer

A low-grade cancer (such as certain forms of prostate cancer) that grows so slowly that the patient is likely to die with the disease rather than from it.

Cross Section

A planar, two-dimensional view formed by a plane cutting through an object at right angles to the axis, allowing the visualization of two true dimensions on an internal body image.

Source of Radiation in Nuclear Medicine

The patient who has absorbed the radioisotope, unlike in conventional X-ray imaging where the X-ray machine itself is the source of radiation.

Cardiac Nuclear Medicine Study

An evaluation where a radioisotope is injected to concentrate in healthy heart muscle; areas lacking radioactivity indicate dead muscle tissue resulting from poor blood flow or occluded coronary arteries.