The standard protocol for assessing the extent or development of cancer is through the usage of imaging machines like PET and CT scans, but such machines can expose the patient to loads of excessive radiation that increases their risk of secondary cancers later in life.
Researchers from Stanford University School of Medicine in California tested a new whole-body diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technique that could eliminate the exposure risk altogether.
Sources
- New Stanford-developed method finds tumors in children without exposing them to radiation, Scope medical blog, 18 Feb 2014.
- New radiation-free imaging method ‘effectively diagnoses cancer’
MedicalNewsToday, 19 Feb 2014. - Ionising radiation-free whole-body MRI versus 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose PET/CT scans for children and young adults with cancer: a prospective, non-randomised, single-centre study, TheLancetOncology, 19 Feb 2014.
- Technique allows for radiation-free detection of tumors
ScienceDaily, 18 Feb 2014.