Positron Emission Tomography Scan What is positron emission
tomography (PET)? Positron emission tomography (PET) is a
specialized radiology procedure used to examine various body
tissues to identify certain conditions. PET may also be used to
follow the progress of the treatment of certain conditions.
While PET is most commonly used in the fields of neurology,
oncology, and cardiology, applications in other fields are
currently being studied. PET is a type of nuclear medicine
procedure. This means that a tiny amount of a radioactive
substance, called a radionuclide (radiopharmaceutical or
radioactive tracer), is used during the procedure to assist in
the examination of the tissue under study. Specifically, PET
studies evaluate the metabolism of a particular organ or tissue,
so that information about the physiology (functionality) and
anatomy (structure) of the organ or tissue is evaluated, as well
as its biochemical properties. Thus, PET may detect biochemical
changes in an organ or tissue that can identify t