Description
of technology
Positron Emission Tomography combined with
Magnetic Resonance Imaging (PET-MRI) is an emerging technology recently
proposed to be used in oncology, neurology and cardiology for diagnostic
purposes. The market offers three different PET-MRI systems, developed by three
manufacturers (GE, Philips and Siemens). The GE system - "Trimodality
PET-CT + MR" – is able to capture and correlate PET, CT and MR images
based on two separate devices, a PET-CT and a MRI. The Philips system –
“Ingenuity TF” - has PET and MR gantries arranged in the direction of the main
scanner axis with a patient handling system mounted between the gantries.
Siemens has developed a fully integrated PET-MRI system – Biograph mMR - with
simultaneous acquisition with a single gantry. This is the only system capable
of simultaneously acquiring the image PET-CT and MR, instead the other two systems use special
software to merge the two types of images. In oncology the expected benefits
include the improvement of diagnostic accuracy compared to PET-CT, especially
for soft tissue cancers, with a lower radiation exposure.
