Explorer – Total-body imaging scanner captures 3D picture in seconds

A positron emission tomography (PET) scan is a nuclear medicine functional imaging technique that allows doctors to observe metabolic processes in the body and aids in the diagnosis of diseases. The scan uses a special dye containing radioactive tracers. These tracers are either swallowed, inhaled, or injected, depending on what part of the body is being examined. Scientists at the University of California Davis (UCD)  professor Simon Cherry,  department of biomedical engineering, and Ramsey Badawi, chief of nuclear medicine at UCD Health and vice-chair for research in the department of radiology, have successfully developed a scanner for  total body scan. Cherry and Badawi conceived this idea almost 15 years ago, and it was kickstarted in 2011 with  support from the National Cancer Institute and the National Institutes of Health. Explorer, the world’s first total-body imaging scanner, can capture a 3D picture of the whole human body at once. It has the capability to scan up to 40 times faster, and it uses up to 40 times less radiation dose than current PET systems. Because it…

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