An estimated 4 to 7 percent of nuclear and molecular imaging procedures are repeated due to poor imaging, which equates to $132 million in Medicare spending on avoidable scans, according to the Government Accountability Office. The Consistency, Accuracy, Responsibility and Excellence in Medical Imaging (CARE) bill, which would establish minimum education and certification standards for personnel who perform nuclear medicine and molecular imaging procedures, could help curb these costs, according to SNM.
A newly developed set of residency training pathways, crafted by an American College of Radiology (ACR)/Society of Nuclear Medicine (SNM) task force, integrates the complementary disciplines of diagnostic radiology (DR), nuclear radiology, nuclear medicine and molecular imaging, which are described in an article published in the April issue of the Journal of the American College of Radiology.
Because young children are more sensitive to radiation than adults, pediatric nuclear medicine providers need to have at least a basic understanding of radiation risk and dosimetry, as well as know how to effectively communicate this information to patients and their families, according to an article published in the March issue of the Journal of Nuclear Medicine Technology.
Maximal wall thickness was identified through PET/CT exams as the strongest predictor of impaired dipyridamole-induced hyperemia and flow reserve, whereas outflow tract obstruction was not an independent determinant, according to a study in the March issue of the Journal of Nuclear Medicine.
The American College of Radiology (ACR) and Society of Nuclear Medicine convened a task force on combined training in diagnostic radiology, nuclear radiology, nuclear medicine and molecular imaging in May 2011, with the goal of developing realistic pathways to integrated residency training, and ACR recommends “expeditiously” moving forward with the design of integrated pathways, according to an article published online in January in the Journal of American College of Radiology.
New developments in tracers could make cardiac PET the more precise approach for absolute quantification of myocardial blood flow.
While questions about the efficacy of mammography abound—especially regarding high-risk women with dense breasts—research is turning to newer PET-based techniques for more specific diagnosis.
An interim 18F-FDG PET/CT exam after two cycles of neoadjuvant chemotherapy was predictive of pathologic response and disease-free survival in patients with triple-negative breast cancer, an aggressive subtype of breast cancer, according to a prospective study published online Jan. 12 in the Journal of Nuclear Medicine.
The Image Gently campaign and the Society of Nuclear Medicine (SNM) have launched the “Go With the Guidelines” campaign to encourage community hospitals, academic hospitals and clinics to observe new North American Guidelines for Nuclear Medicine Radiopharmaceutical Dose in children.
In a performance evaluation, the National Electrical Manufacturers Association found the NanoPET/CT system to be of significant value in preclinical research, according to an article published in the November issue of the Journal of Nuclear Medicine.
Citing significant variations in pediatric radiopharmaceutical doses and package inserts lacking pediatric doses, the authors of an article appearing in the November issue of Radiology indicated recently approved consensus guidelines for pediatric administered radiopharmaceutical doses may help solve the problem.
Patients seeking information about nuclear medicine and molecular imaging can now access discoverMI.org, a patient-focused website launched by the Society of Nuclear Medicine (SNM).
89Zr-desferrioxamine B-7E11 displays high tumor-to-background tissue contrast in immuno-PET and can be used as a tool to monitor and quantify with high specificity tumor response in prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA)-positive prostate cancer, according to research published in the October issue of the Journal of Nuclear Medicine.
The Society of Nuclear Medicine Technologist Section has re-launched its Professional Development and Education Fund, which was created in 2001, and aims to support the advancement of molecular and nuclear medicine technologists through professional development that promotes clinical excellence and optimal patient outcomes.
The Society of Nuclear Medicine has announced the theme for this year’s Nuclear Medicine Week, Oct. 2-8, is “Visualizing a Brighter and Healthier Tomorrow,” and released a toolkit for nuclear and molecular imaging professionals.
Measuring bone marrow cellularity is typically done using a biopsy of the iliac crest, but a recent study published in the Journal of Nuclear Medicine indicates that MRI images may also adequately, and noninvasively, measure in vivo bone marrow cellularity.
The Society of Nuclear Medicine (SNM) has announced the recipients of the 2011-2013 SNM Wagner-Torizuka Fellowship, which is a two-year fellowship designed to provide extensive training and experience in the fields of nuclear medicine and molecular imaging for Japanese physicians in the early stages of their careers.
In 1.7 percent of patients, aneurysm was found incidentally on PET/CT, and thrombus was present in 44 percent of these cases, according to a study in the September issue of the Journal of Nuclear Medicine. The overall prognosis for any cancer may be worsened by concurrent thrombosis, according to the study authors.
Phantom and in vivo experiments have demonstrated the feasibility of simultaneous PET and 3D fluorescence optical tomography (FOT) imaging, according to research published in the August issue of the Journal of the Nuclear Medicine.
A PET-guided treatment algorithm was proven feasible, according to the results of the MUNICON II trial, published in this month’s Journal of Nuclear Medicine. However, by comparing the groups of non-responding patients in the current trial and the previous published MUNICON I trial, increased histopathologic response was observed after salvage radiochemotherapy, but the study’s primary endpoint to increase the R0 resection rate was not met.
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