Being a specialized branch of modern medicine exploiting radioactivity for imaging, diagnosis, and treatment, nuclear medicine is multidisciplinary field that heavily utilizes advances in modern physics, chemistry and medical science. This paper investigates scientific and technical concepts related to nuclear medicine. First of all, it addresses the types of radiation typically exploited in most nuclear medicine procedures. Secondly, the paper covers the process of preparing patients to nuclear medicine procedures. Third, the paper outlines advantages and disadvantages of nuclear medicine. Finally, the paper addresses ailments that are typically diagnosed and treated with nuclear medicine.
There are four types of radiation that found application in nuclear medicine, in particular, the gamma rays, the beta plus rays, beta minus rays, RX (x-rays) and alpha rays. There are other types of radiation that emerge to become applicable in this field as well. Gamma rays are perfect diagnostic tools due to the fact that they can go through large thickness of matter. Gamma rays correspond to “emission of short wave-length and variable energy portions” (Zimmerman, 2007). Beta-plus rays emit positrons that collide to release photons; PET (Positron Emission Tomography) is based on the analysis of the journey that photons make. This technology is based on short-lived positron emitters such as 11C, 11N, 15O, and 18F. Beta-minus rays consist of negatively loaded particles; those are primarily used in oncology. According to Zimmerman (2007), an alpha ray “corresponds to the spontaneous generation of a heavy particle consisting in a naked nucleus formed by two neurons and two protons”. The alpha particles are used to transform or cut organic tissue molecules. X-Rays are emission of light; they are the first type of radiation that was observed and produced. X-Ray discovery was an important milestone in the history of radiology.
There are approximately 100 radioisotopes whose beta or gamma radiation is used in nuclear medicine, in particular, for the purposes of diagnosis and treatment. The most commonly utilized isotopes are 131I, 60Co, or 99mTc (with a half-life of 6 hours, it is the most commonly used isotope in most diagnostic procedures including various organ imaging along with blood-flow analysis).
Nuclear medicine also utilizes radiopharmaceuticals both for clinical and therapy applications. For example, radiopharmaceuticals labelled with positron emitters such as glucose analogue FDG are utilized as markers (according to Chery et al. (2012), FDG is a marker for a range of clinically important conditions such as epilepsy or coronary artery disease). Radiopharmaceuticals that are employed for therapy applications are typically used for selectively killing cells. For example, beta-minus labelled radiopharmaceuticals are employed for destroying cancer cells. Besides, radiopharmaceuticals are normally used for clinical studies in conjunction with imaging systems (Cherry et al., 2012).
Patients are typically prepared to nuclear medicine procedures in a simple way. Garments worn during the procedure vary depending on the type of procedure being used. Pregnant or breastfeeding women may need specific precautions. Patients are normally required to inform the doctor on the medications they are taking. Besides, they are required to remove all metallic items and jewellery to …