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Negatives and Side Effects of PET/CT
Although PET/CT is an excellent imaging tool with many benefits there are some
negatives and possible side effects of the procedure. These include:
· PET/CT is expensive. At over $2Million per machine the cost is prohibitive
for smaller medical centers.
· PET/CT is a new technique and requires expertise in both nuclear medicine
(PET) and other areas of radiology (CT). Technicians will need to be trained
on both techniques, as opposed to just the one they were using before, as PET
and CT are two completely different fields of radiology. Also surgeons who were
trained to reads PET will have to be trained to read CT, and vice-versa, as
the PET is functional and CT is analytical based. This will take both time and
money, as well as leave some scope for human error.
· PET/CT can expose people to radiation, which is known to potentially increase
the risk of cancer
· PET/CT cannot be used for people who are allergic to the contrast material
(usually iodine) used in the imaging.
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