Nuclear Medicine - Department of Radiology

Overview

Nuclear medicine is a subspecialty within the field of radiology. Specialty-trained radiologists use very small amounts of injected, ingested or inhaled radioactive materials to diagnose disease and other abnormalities. Unlike conventional diagnostic imaging, which uses an external source of energy, nuclear medicine radiologists introduce a radioactive material into the body. The radioactive material, called radiopharmaceuticals or radiotracers, are incorporated into a specific tissue or organ to be detected by an external scanning device or specialized camera. The images produced provide information on organ function and cellular activity.

There are several types of nuclear medicine scans, and the radioactive tracer may be injected into a vein, swallowed by mouth or inhaled as a gas, and eventually collects or is absorbed in the target area to be scanned. The radioactive tracer produces an energy signal that can be detected by a specialized camera or scanner, including the gamma camera, single-photon emission computed tomography scanner or positron emission tomography (PET) scanner.

Disease begins with microscopic cell changes. Nuclear medicine has the potential to identify disease in an earlier, more treatable stage, often before conventional imaging and other tests are able to reveal abnormalities.

Advanced Molecular Imaging

Nuclear medicine uses specialized isotopes to treat some tumors, to aide in the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease and certain mental disorders, and to assess treatment response of tumors.

Nuclear medicine scans are used to diagnose a wide variety of medical conditions and diseases, and include:

Nuclear Medicine Safety

Because the doses of radiotracer are very small, diagnostic nuclear medicine procedures result in minimal radiation exposure. Nuclear medicine procedures have been performed for more than 50 years on adults and for more than 40 years on children of all ages without any known adverse effects.

The VCU Department of Radiology, nuclear medicine specialists use the newest imaging technologies and the “ALARA” principle (As Low As Reasonably Achievable) to select the amount of radiotracer needed to provide an accurate test with the least amount of radiation exposure to the patient.

Learn More About Our Safety Office

Nuclear Medicine Faculty