How PET works?

Positron Emission Tomography (PET) is an imaging technique that provides physicians and researchers with unique information about the body's chemistry. Unlike computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), which primarily examine anatomy, PET allows us to visualize body function.

PET imaging requires access to a cyclotron, which produces positron-emitting elements or radioisotopes (oxygen, carbon, nitrogen, fluorine, etc.). These radioisotopes can be easily incorporated into other chemical compounds including normal body components, like oxygen (used to image blood flow) or a drug (used to visualize brain chemical systems), to make a radiopharmaceutical.