WIN Program
PET (positron emission tomography) Scanner Suite
Adult and paediatric patients will benefit from a new Positron Emission Tomography (PET) scanner suite opened at Westmead Hospital (pictured, above).
The suite was officially opened on 16 October 2006 by Federal Minister for Health, Tony Abbott.
PET is an emerging technology that uses radiation to take finely detailed images of hard and soft tissue from all angles. Its images are particularly valuable in detecting and diagnosing cancers, particularly tumours, that evade other forms of diagnostic imaging.
Better diagnostic imaging reduces the need for more invasive tests and procedures that create stress for patients and families.
The new PET scanner will also provide significant opportunities for new medical research at Westmead.
The PET suite is located in Westmead Hospital's Medical Imaging Service, directly above the new Westmead Cancer Centre.
It is anticipated that approximately 1,000 patients will undergo PET treatment in the first 12 months, with the referral base growing rapidly.
About 80 to 90 per cent of patients using the PET service will be cancer patients; another 10 to 20 per cent will have neurological disorders.
The service
The unit is used by both Westmead Hospital and the Children’s Hospital, Westmead, as well as providing PET scans as part of a statewide service.
PET is particularly effective in the diagnosis of various cancers and neurological conditions including:
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Lung cancer
- Colorectal cancer
- Lymphoma
- Melanoma
- Gynaecological cancers such as ovarian or cervical cancers
- Stomach cancers
- Paediatric sarcomas (soft tissue tumours)
- Epilepsy
- Dementia.
The funding
Funding for the $4 million facility was provided by the Federal Government, which will also provide recurrent funding support for three years. This includes funding to design and construct the PET unit, as well to purchase equipment.
The facility
The new PET facility is located directly above the new Westmead Cancer Centre, providing cancer patients and staff with easy access to this specialised diagnostic service.
Current generation PET machines incorporate a CT (computerised tomography) scanner into the gantry, providing a combination of anatomic data and functional information. Recent studies show this improves the accuracy of evaluation.
The unit includes the PET camera room, a reception area, consulting rooms, a reporting room, patient change area and recovery area as well as a 'hot lab'and 'hot cell', where compounds are prepared and measured (assayed) before being injected.
The unit has its own plant room and air conditioning system, to ensure patient and staff comfort and safety, and complies with all safety standards for use of radioactive materials.
The floor of the unit is specially reinforced to support the PET equipment, which can weigh up to four tonnes.
The unit was designed to accommodate a second PET camera, if required at some time in the future, with minimal reconfiguration.
The facility is now one of only three in Sydney; other PET units are located at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital and Liverpool Hospital.
About the radiopharmaceuticals
A PET unit requires a regular supply of radiopharmaceuticals, which are radioactive drugs used in nuclear medicine diagnosis.
In the PET camera, these radioactive pharmaceuticals act as 'tracers' that enable the camera to 'see' living human tissue.
For patients, the level of radioactivity in a PET scan is about the same as for other types of nuclear medicine and is relatively low risk. Patients remain in the unit for about two hours and, during this time, most of the radioactive material is excreted through the urine.
Radiopharmaceuticals are made in a special machine called a cyclotron. The half-lives of these radiopharmaceuticals ranges from two minutes to 110 minutes. The half-life is the time taken for half of the radioactivity to disappear.
PET scans that need radiopharmaceuticals with a short half-life usually require an on-site cyclotron. Sydney West Area Health Service is currently investigating options for an on-site cyclotron, which may include private partnership opportunities.
Research
The Westmead campus is widely recognized as one of Australia's largest and most productive research campuses.
The new PET unit will be an enormous asset to the research community at Westmead, which includes researchers from the Children's Medical Research Institute, Millennium Institute, University of Sydney, Westmead Hospital departments and Children's Hospital Westmead departments.
The new PET unit could be used in various projects including research into:
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Neuro-degenerative diseases such as Parkinsons
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Cancer, both adult and paediatric
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Depression and psychiatric disturbances
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Brain trauma after motor accidents or stroke
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Epilepsy
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Heart disease
- Viral and infectious diseases
- Genetics
- Immunology
- Liver function and liver disease.
The research applications of PET will be greatly facilitated by a local cyclotron and associated radiopharmaceutical production facility.
Half-life
Half-life is the length of time it takes for a radioactive substance to lose half of its radioactivity from decay.
At the end of one half-life, only 50% of the original radionuclide (the radioactive element or substance) remains.
For example, PET scanners routinely use radiopharmaceuticals with a half-life of two hours.
Two hours after it's been created, only 50 per cent of the original radioactivity remains in the pharmaceutical compound.
Two hours later, only 50 per cent of that (or 25 per cent of the original amount) remains, and so on.
Patients mostly stay in the PET unit for about two hours, during which time most of the radioactivity will leave the body.
Simple precautions, such as going straight home after treatment (and not out, or back to work), and not nursing young children for a few hours, are usually enough to ensure the safety of patients and family members.
Project snapshot:
Positron Emission Tomography (PET) Suite, part of the new Cancer Centre
Cost: $4 million Commonwealth funding
Currently: Complete.
First patients expected: 2006
Related projects: Westmead Cancer Centre, due for completion in 2007
Facility: New build on level 2 of Westmead Hospital, above the new Cancer Centre and adjacent to Radiology
Location: Westmead Hospital
