The new Baylor Diagnostic Imaging Center at Junius gives doctors a clearer picture of what's wrong and how to treat it.

The Imaging Center, which opened in June, offers patients a relaxed environment and advanced equipment to help diagnose medical conditions. "The center is [created] for patient safety, patient comfort, customer service and results," says Don Allen, director of radiology at Baylor University Medical Center at Dallas.

Located on Junius Street, adjacent to Baylor Dallas, the center allows radiologists using X-ray, ultrasound, computed tomography (CT) and high-field magnetic resonance to work in real time with colleagues at Baylor's Radiosurgery Center. Digital images help radiation oncologists plan targeted radiation to tumors.

The center also features a highly advanced positron emission tomography or PET/CT scanner. The PET/CT scanner combines PET's ability to determine metabolic activity with CT's strength in showing anatomical detail. PET imaging alone has a limited ability to show structural abnormalities.This has led to combining PET and CT in a single scanner.

The PET/CT scanner primarily aids in staging lung, breast, colon and other cancers. Doctors also will use it to monitor patient response to treatment.

To undergo scanning, patients receive a glucose tracer, which is absorbed by the tissue. About 60 to 90 minutes later, the patient rests on the imaging table. During the 30-minute test, the scanner picks up tracer activity, with areas of higher glucose metabolism lighting up more brightly than other places.

"Most malignant tumors have a higher rate of glucose metabolism than most normal tissue," explains Landis Griffeth, MD, PhD, medical director of nuclear medicine at Baylor Dallas. "With a PET scanner, we can usually image those tumors, in terms of where they are located, where they have spread and how metabolically active they are.

"Clinical use of PET/CT has been exploding during the last three to four years," Griffeth says. Not all machines share the same capabilities. Baylor selected the DiscoveryT PET/CT scanner from General Electric. This limited-production scanner exists in only a handful of U.S. medical centers, Griffeth says, and will allow Baylor to participate in new advances in PET imaging.

"Our goal at Baylor is to provide accurate and convenient care for patients. And in many cases, that's related to new techniques and [advanced] imaging, hardware and scanners. This device puts us at the forefront of the delivery of PET/CT information."   : :


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