St. Croix Regional Medical Center began providing positron emission tomography (PET/CT) imaging last week. A PET/CT scan is a specific type of imaging test that can help doctors see how the tissues and organs inside the body are functioning, particularly the brain and heart. It also allows medical staff to detect the presence and extent of several diseases, including most types of cancer, neurological disorders like Alzheimerís disease and epilepsy, and damage to the heart muscle after a heart attack.

A PET/CT scan can be particularly effective in identifying cancer, determining whether it has spread, and how itís responding to treatment. In addition, PET scans can be valuable in assessing the effectiveness of chemotherapy. A PET/CT scan can detect areas of decreased blood flow in the heart or reveal early coronary artery disease.

ìPET/CT imaging also provides medical staff with information about the bodyís chemistry, cell function, and location of disease ñ information not always available through other imaging technologies such as MRI, X-ray, CT, or physical exams,î explained Kathy Coffman, SCRMC director of Diagnostic Imaging.

This service is available at SCRMC and comes as part of a joint arrangement with Amery Medical Center.

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