PET/CT stands for positron emission computed tomography. This technology injects extremely small amounts of positron tracers into the human body, and then uses special in vitro detection instruments to detect these positron nuclei. The distribution of toxins in the organs of the human body, combined with the precise positioning of CT, can accurately display the physiological metabolism and anatomical structure of various organs of the human body. Clinically, it is mainly used for differential diagnosis of most benign and malignant tumors, staging and re-staging of tumors, and assessment of systemic conditions, evaluation of efficacy before and after various treatments, and systemic monitoring of tumor metastases.
PET/MR did not appear until PET/MR appeared as a diagnostic method nearly ten years ago. The ultimate form of PET/MR development as a diagnostic device is uncertain, but it has attracted the attention of many medical centers. Its most attractive feature is its combination of PET and MRI images, which will provide the potential for developing new diagnostic methods. It can visualize the process of proliferation and differentiation of diseased tissue at the molecular level over time, which will contribute to early warning of disease and help doctors identify various disease states.
PET/CT and PET/MR are both products of the development of nuclear medicine technology. Although they have some similarities, they still have certain differences in many aspects.
PET/CT has become very popular in clinical practice, and its value has been recognized. Although PET/MR has great clinical application value, the unit cost is high and the machine is large, which can affect the determination of many hospitals to deploy them as soon as possible. It is estimated that the cost of an all-in-one PET/MR machine is between US$2.5 million and US$3 million, which is higher than the US$1.9 million to US$2.4 million price tag of a PET/CT scanner.
The limited efficacy of pet-ct examination in the diagnosis of central nervous system diseases, orthopedic infections, inflammatory diseases, and in the evaluation and tracking of metastatic disease has long been proven, while the expertise of PET/MR is in Soft tissue contrast, which makes it more sensitive to vascular and soft tissue diseases. Hybrid PET/MR imaging improves characterization of atherosclerotic plaques and the evaluation of angiogenesis or stem cell therapies.