A complete guide to Whole Body PET CT Scan

In India, because of the huge shift in lifestyle as well as eating habits people develop health issues at tremendous levels. By detecting health problems at an early stage, you can get rid of the burden of diseases. There are various types of imaging procedures to detect the problems in the body such as x-ray, ultrasound, MRI, CT, and PET CT Scan. PET CT (Positron Emission Tomography-Computerized Tomography) scan is a nuclear medicine test that is a combination of a CT scan and a PET scan. It allows doctors to detect different diseases in the human body at the cellular level. Unlike other imaging procedures, it uses a special radioactive material along with glucose to analyse the working of organs and tissues. The radioactive tracer is injected into the veins of the patient and the tissues and organs that absorb this solution get highlighted under the PET CT scanner. It helps doctors in analysing how well the organs and tissues are working.

What is a whole-body PET CT Scan?

PET CT scan is a combination of PET scan and CT scan into a single PET CT scanner to diagnose various diseases these days. Other imaging procedures such as CT scan, MRI scan, X-Ray, etc. provide information about the organs and tissues inside the body at the structural level, whereas a whole-body PET CT scan provides information about organs at both structural and functional levels but the information of the tissues at both cellular and molecular level. It helps the doctor in the detection of cancer, heart disease, infection, and brain diseases at an initial level.

The whole-body PET CT Scan is most commonly used to detect cancer. Because it allows the detection of tumors at an earlier stage.

Why should I need a Whole body PET CT Scan?

The whole body PET CT scan is used to detect a wider range of diseases or disorders such as:

• Cancer and response of the treatment for cancer

• Brain Disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease, Seizures and memory disorders, etc.

• Heart Disorders such as coronary arteries disease

• Infections

• Central nervous system disorders etc.

How does a Whole body PET CT Scan work?

The procedure of whole body PET-CT involves the injection of a very small amount of FDG( radioactive glucose tracer) into your vein to light up the cells followed by taking images of the whole body using the gamma camera to detect the problem. In the case of tumor cells, the PET-CT scan captures the images of the radioactivity within the tumor cells. The procedure of the whole body PET CT scan generally takes about 20 – 90 minutes.

What are the possible precautions to be taken for a whole-body PET CT Scan?

• You may be asked to fast for 4-6 hours before the scan but you can have plain water.

• Diabetic patient can have their meal but early morning

• It is advisable for diabetics not to miss their medicine on the day of the procedure.

Cost of whole body PET CT Scan

The PET CT scan combines the two techniques in a single scan. It is considered one of the most effective and also expensive methodologies. But because of its benefits, it is highly recommended. Normally, the cost of a whole-body PET CT Scan in Delhi is between INR 23,000 to INR 25,000 in all diagnostic centers.

Conclusion

Whole body PET CT scan is a nuclear medicine scan that is usually used for the early detection of cancer and other problems related to the brain, heart, and nervous system at the cellular and functional level. It is helpful in tracking the treatment progression and deciding the best treatment for your health issues before it becomes worse.

Getting knowledge about the whole body PET CT scan before undergoing the scan is helpful in lowering stress.