Nuclear Medicine News and Research

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Nuclear medicine is a branch or specialty of medicine and medical imaging that uses radioactive isotopes (radionuclides) and relies on the process of radioactive decay in the diagnosis and treatment of disease. In nuclear medicine procedures, radionuclides are combined with other chemical compounds or pharmaceuticals to form radiopharmaceuticals.

PET scanning made as publicly insured health service

Positron Corporation today announced that the Ministry of Health and Long Term Care of Ontario, Canada is making positron emission tomography (PET) scanning a publicly insured health service available to cancer and cardiac patients under conditions where PET scans have been proven to be clinically effective.

15 Sep 2009

Zevalin radioimmunotherapy drug approved for treating non-Hodgkin's lymphoma

SNM applauds the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) recent decision to approve the radioimmunotherapy (RIT) drug, Zevalin, as a front-line treatment of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL).

11 Sep 2009

American Asthma Foundation awards $750,000 for asthma research

Dr. Serpil Erzurum, one of the nation's leading experts in asthma, has been awarded $750,000 by the American Asthma Foundation (AAF). Dr. Erzurum will collaborate with experts in nuclear medicine and physics to develop an innovative way for clinicians to observe changes in the lungs of patients during an asthma attack.

9 Sep 2009

SNM survey evaluates the impact of the worldwide medical isotope shortage

SNM recently conducted a survey of nuclear pharmacies-pharmacies that supply the critical radioisotope Technetium-99m, which is used in more than 16 million nuclear medicine tests each year in the United States-to assess, anecdotally, the impact of the worldwide medical isotope shortage. According to the survey, 60 percent of radiopharmacies have been impacted by the most recent shortage. Technetium-99m is a product of Molybdenum-99, which has been in short supply recently.

9 Sep 2009

Proposed Idaho nuclear plant to tackle critical shortage of lifesaving medical isotopes

Alternate Energy Holdings, Inc. (PINKSHEETS: AEHI) -- A critical worldwide shortage of nuclear isotopes has forced doctors to forgo lifesaving tests and increased testing cost -- underscoring the need for more nuclear reactors, according to AEHI, which is proposing to build a nuclear plant in Idaho.

9 Sep 2009

First-quarter fiscal 2010 results announced by Peregrine Pharmaceuticals

Peregrine Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: PPHM) today announced financial results for the first quarter of fiscal year (FY) 2010 ended July 31, 2009. Total revenues for the first quarter of FY 2010 increased 345% to $6,750,000, compared to $1,517,000 for the comparable prior year quarter. This increase was primarily generated from increased government contract revenue and from increased sales by Avid Bioservices, the company's wholly owned contract manufacturing subsidiary.

3 Sep 2009

New findings on molecular imaging and prostate cancer

A new study published in the September issue of The Journal of Nuclear Medicine shows that positron emission tomography (PET)/computer tomography (CT) scans with the imaging agent choline could detect recurring prostate cancer sooner than conventional imaging technologies in some patients who have had their prostates surgically removed.

2 Sep 2009

Inadequate government funding increases British Columbians' healthcare cost burden

British Columbia families will bear the brunt of the provincial government's failure to adequately fund health care, Health Sciences Association of BC president Reid Johnson said in response to the provincial government's budget introduced today.

2 Sep 2009

Daxor's signed trial agreement with Pacific Cardiology to provide the BVA-100 instrument

Daxor Corporation, a medical instrumentation and biotechnology company, today announced the receipt of a signed trial agreement from Pacific Cardiology, LLC of Honolulu, Hawaii. This will provide Pacific Cardiology with a Blood Volume Analyzer-100 (BVA-100), an instrument which enables semi-automated measurement of a patient's total blood volume, red blood cell volume and plasma volume.

1 Sep 2009

New radiotherapy treatment devised for treating women with metastatic ovarian cancer

In the future, women with metastatic ovarian cancer could be treated with a radioactive substance that can seek and destroy tumour cells. An initial study in patients conducted jointly by the Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg and Sahlgrenska University Hospital has found that the treatment has no unwanted side-effects.

31 Aug 2009

Positron forges Agent Agreement with Technology Imaging Services

Positron Corporation (OTCBB:POSC) (the “Company”), a molecular imaging solutions company focused on Nuclear Cardiology, announced today that they have executed an Agent Agreement with TIS – Technology Imaging Services. TIS offers a wide range of solutions for Nuclear Cardiology, Oncology, and Cardiac PET, including hot lab set up and products.

26 Aug 2009

Shortage of medical isotopes could affect the health of Canadians

Canada's physicians are deeply troubled about the prolonged and unpredictable shortage of medical isotopes and impact the crisis continues to have on patient care.

20 Aug 2009

World shortage of molybdenum may hinder nuclear medicine services

Problems with the world production and supply of molybdenum are leading to shortages of radioisotopes for nuclear medicine imaging tests, according to an editorial in the journal Nuclear Medicine Communications, official journal of the British Nuclear Medicine Society (BNMS).

5 Aug 2009

Coronary calcium scoring may predict heart attack risk

Researchers may be able to predict future severe cardiac events in patients with known, stable coronary artery disease (CAD) using coronary calcium scoring, according to a study published in the online edition of Radiology.

28 Jul 2009

Dilon Technologies delivers enhanced imaging capabilities

Dilon Technologies, Inc., the leader in molecular breast imaging, today announced the release of the newest Dilon 6800 Software update including enhancements for both breast and general nuclear medicine applications image processing. The new software functionalities complement the Slant15 Collimator for breast imaging and the Low Energy High-Resolution (LEHR) Collimator for general nuclear medicine applications, both released earlier this year as purchase options for the Dilon 6800 gamma camera.

16 Jun 2009

Medical isotope shortage hurts hospitals and disrupts medical tests

Reuters reports that "a North American shortage of medical isotopes has forced many U.S. hospitals to begin rationing scores of diagnostic tests, and doctors said on Friday they see no quick solution."

15 Jun 2009

Non-toxic radioactive patch successfully treats skin cancer

A new study shows that a radioactive skin patch can safely and successfully treat basal cell carcinoma, one of the most common types of skin cancers, according to researchers at the SNM's 56th Annual Meeting. The skin patch, which delivers the radioactive phosphorus-32, is nontoxic and could be an excellent alternative to surgery or radiotherapy in cases where carrying out these treatments is difficult.

15 Jun 2009