PET

Positron Emission Tomography (PET)

PET ­produces images of the body by detecting the radiation emitted from radioactive substances. These substances are injected into the body, and are usually tagged with aradioactive atom, such as Carbon-11, Fluorine-18, Oxygen-15, or Nitrogen-13, that has a short decay time. These radioactive atoms are formed by bombarding normal chemicals with neutrons to create short-livedradioactive isotopes. PET detects the gamma rays given off at the site where a positron emitted from the radioactive substance.