With the aid of a PET camera, researchers from Karolinska Institutet in Sweden have developed a new method for investigating the dopamine system in the brains of patients suffering from Parkinson’s disease. The method measures levels of a protein called dopamine transporter and could lead to improved diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease and the development of new treatments. The study is published in the scientific journal Movement Disorders. (read more here)

SNMMI’s Cardiovascular Council and the American Society of Nuclear Cardiology (ASNC) have issued the joint position paper, Clinical Quantification of Myocardial Blood Flow Using PET, which was jointly published in the Journal of Nuclear Cardiology and The Journal of Nuclear Medicine. This position statement consolidates and updates technical considerations for clinical quantification of myocardial blood flow and myocardial flow reserve, and it summarizes and updates the scientific basis for their clinical application. {read more here}

PET scans with the novel radiotracer flortaucipir may provide more valuable information in the early detection of neurodegeneration associated with Alzheimer’s disease than MRI, according to a study published in the February issue of the Journal of Nuclear Medicine. {read more here}

A recent guideline from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) in the United Kingdom recommends PET-CT scans should be used to more quickly and accurately diagnosis and manage pancreatic cancer, resulting in a 20 percent reduction in surgery to remove the cancer.  {read more here}