Positron Emission Tomography (PET/CT) Scans

Part of the Southwoods mission involves improving patient access to specialized healthcare services and elevating the quality of healthcare in the Mahoning Valley. The introduction of a fixed location PET/CT scanner at Southwoods Imaging was another first for our community. This unit has the ability to diagnose, stage the progress of tumors and ascertain the effectiveness of cancer treatments. PET uses special radiopharmaceuticals to generate highly detailed, three-dimensional images of tissue function and cell activity to detect disease much earlier than other modalities.

Our PET/CT is equipped with time-of-flight (TOF) technology. This technology utilizes high speed Lutetium based crystals to collect data during a patient’s scan. Since these crystals collect data at a much higher rate of speed than previous PET technologies, they are capable of detecting much smaller tumors and cancers. The earlier detection ultimately leads to better