What is FDG PET-CT: Oncology and Infection?
PET-CT scans are conducted with the help of a radioactive tracer which will highlight areas where abnormal cells may be located. In Australia, the most commonly used tracer is 18F-FDG (fluoro-deoxyglucose). The tracer FDG PET-CT scans can be used to detect, stage and monitor cancer and other conditions.
FDG oncology and infection imaging can be used to distinguish benign from malignant lesions, search for tumours, stage cancer, monitor the effectiveness of cancer treatment, detect tumour recurrence, and guide radiation therapy planning. Images produced from the PET-CT scanner can determine the location and intensity of the disease process and generate a whole-body image for analysis.
Before your scan, a nuclear medicine technologist will ask you questions about your clinical history and explain the scan to you. You will have a chance to ask any questions you may have about the examination.
A cannula will be placed in one of your veins, and your blood glucose will be checked. Then a technologist will get you settled in an uptake room with a recliner and warm blanket. The FDG tracer will then be administered. It takes 60 minutes for the tracer to disperse throughout your body.
After 60 minutes, we will ask you to empty your bladder as best you can, and then take you through to our PET-CT scanner. You will lie on the scanning bed, as it moves through the scanner. It is important that you lie as still as possible while the scanner is operating. Once the PET scan is performed, we will then perform the diagnostic CT scan. Depending on what your referring doctor has requested, you may also receive a second injection of CT contrast.
An FDG PET-CT scan can take 15-40 minutes. Generally, a PET-CT appointment will take around 2.5 hours in total.We will let you know how long your appointment is scheduled for at the time of booking.
After your scan, a PET-CT technologist will generate the images and upload them onto our private electronic database.
Our highly trained subspecialist PET Radiologists will interpret the images, produce a report, and send it to your referring doctor. Our Radiologists have very close working relationships with many of the referring doctors and will contact them urgently if appropriate.
Our friendly customer service team will ask you some questions, and advise of specific preparation at the time of booking.
In general, FDG PET-CT for oncology imaging preparation includes:
Day before the scan | On the day of the scan |
Do | Do |
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Don't | Don't |
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When booking your scan, please notify staff if you:
- think you may be pregnant
- are breast feeding
- have kidney failure
- have diabetes
- have had a previous adverse reaction to intravenous contrast for CT scans
- are severely claustrophobic
- have any allergies
- are taking any medications
Having accurate dates of your most recent medical history, including prior imaging, surgery, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy, will also help in the booking process.
If you have had scans elsewhere, please bring all relevant imaging with you on the day of your scan so it can be uploaded onto our system for comparison.
You will be given an arrival time well in advance of your camera time, so the tracer can be administered. Tracers decay rapidly after production, and your administered dose has been calculated based on your body weight and to align with your appointment time.
The tracer, 18F-FDG, has a half-life of just under 2 hours. This means less than 10% of the radioactivity generated by the tracer is left in your body after 8 hours, and it will clear your body within 24 hours. There are no side effects associated with the tracer.
The amount of radiation used in PET-CT imaging is typically small. Health experts feel the risk to your health from this is very small and the benefits of the diagnostic information obtained usually outweigh any potential risks.
If you are pregnant or think you may be pregnant, please let us know.
Our friendly team will advise you of any required after care following your scan. After a PET-CT scan you may continue with your normal daily activities, unless advised otherwise by your healthcare practitioner.
If you have had sedation, you will require somebody to drive you home.
It is recommended to avoid close contact with children and pregnant women for 12 hours post-injection.
If you are breast feeding, it is advised to express breast milk and feed baby via bottle for 12 hours post-injection of the FDG tracer, to minimise radiation exposure to the baby.
Qscan bulk bills Medicare eligible FDG PET-CT scans if you have a referral from a specialist doctor. A referral received from a general practitioner or another non-specialist health care provider will incur a gap payment. Some cancers and inflammatory disorders are not covered by a Medicare rebate, even if referred by a specialist, and these referrals will also incur a gap payment.
Our customer service team will be able to advise you of any costs that may be involved with your FDG PET-CT scan.
