PET is Positron Emission Tomography, and it uses radioactive glucose, the basic energy source of all cells in the body, to show up the differences in activity in all cells in the body. It is always combined with "low-dose" CT "without any contrast", called a PET/CT Scan, and it is always a whole-body scan, so every part of the body is examined. Since the CT is "low-dose", radiation from a PET/CT Scan is less than from a normal CT Scan, so it is very safe. Since "no contrast" is injected into the body, even patients with kidney failure can do the scan. The "low-dose" CT images "without contrast" are good enough to show exactly where in the body are the regions of high glucose consumption. Cancer cells are more active than normal cells, and they are detected by PET as they consume more glucose. When the cancer is very active, PET can detect cancer as small as 1 mm, so PET/CT is the most sensitive and accurate imaging technique to detect cancer today, much better than MRI, CT, Ultrasound, Mammogram, and Bone Scan. MRI and CT cannot tell if tumours they see are still active or already dead, so MRI and CT are not reliable, after cancer treatment. PET, on the other hand, can easily tell if any tumour still present after cancer treatment, is dead or still active. That is why MRI and CT should never be used for the management of cancer, before or after treatment, except in a few well-defined situations. Unfortunately, PET/CT or Cancer Scan is very expensive, due to the very high capital expenditure to buy all the high tech machines and to build the facilities. In South-East Asia, the cost of one scan is around US$1,700, while in other countries, it can be much higher. Austral-Euro Diagnosis started its mission to make PET/CT very affordable to the masses because it is so useful but most people could not afford it, and so had to suffer more or die earlier. Reasons why we can offer PET/CT scans at such low prices, even though we use the latest equipment, include: (1) we have our own Cyclotron Facility to produce radioactive glucose; (2) we do a lot of PET/CT scans, much more than others in the region; (3) we are socially oriented, and not capitalistic. Austral-Euro Diagnosis operates 2 PET/CT centres in Malaysia: one in Kuala Lumpur, and one in Johor Bahru. The centres are managed by a senior Nuclear Medicine doctor who had worked at: Necker Hospital (Paris), Royal Brompton / Royal Marsden Hospital (London), and Mount Elizabeth Hospital (Singapore). WHEN TO DO PET/CT SCAN? (1) When there is suspicion of cancer, either from clinical symptoms or from blood/urine tests. (2) When metastatic nodes are found and the cancer of origin is unknown. (3) Before starting cancer treatment, it is important to know the stage and grade of the cancer. PET/CT is the most accurate technique for this, much more accurate than CT and MRI. A baseline PET/CT Scan before treatment is very important for comparison with follow-up scans after treatment. With PET/CT, there is no need to do Bone Scan anymore, as PET/CT is much better for the detection of bone metastases, especially small ones deep inside the body. (4) After treatment, PET/CT scan tell accurately whether the treatment has been effective or not, within a couple of weeks, compared with several months for other imaging techniques. For treatment that may last several months, it is recommended to do PET/CT after 1 or 2 months, to see if the treatment is giving any positive trend, and if not, treatment can be changed without losing precious time. (5) After successful treatment, cancer is known to come back in many cases, so regular PET/CT would be able to detect the earliest recurrence, in order that early treatment can have more chances of success. One schedule is to do PET/CT every 6 months, and later on, every 12 months, until 5 years. WHICH CANCER IS GOOD FOR PET/CT? Almost all cancers are good for PET/CT, but a few very slow growing cancers may not be so good, as they do not consume much glucose. Cancers good for PET/CT are: any cancer in the head and neck, breast, lung, colon, oesophagus, stomach, pancreas, gallbladder and bile duct, ampulla, liver, kidney, adrenal, ureter, bladder, prostate, testicle, uterus, o***y, sarcoma, and most lymphomas. Our prices are among the lowest in the world: less than US$660 for the first scan, and less than US$330 for follow-up scans if needed. PET/CT Scans needed for cancer management can be 3 or more for the first year, 1 or more a year after that, so a lot of savings can be made if PET/CT are done at our place, even adding in travel costs from other countries. FOR APPOINTMENT:
At our Kuala Lumpur centre, call: (+6)03-21411373
At our Johor Bahru centre, call: (+6)07-2228332
At both centres: - send sms to: (+6)016-6789532
or - send email to: r n g e h @ h o t m a i l . c o m
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Please see our website: www.australeuro.com
Or, call: (+6)016-6789532
Or, send email to: rngeh@hotmail.com
