The treatment, diagnosis and radioactivity for imaging can be conducted using nuclear medicine that is a particular area of contemporary medicine. The small quantities of the radioactive substance are injected into the body by means of a number of techniques of imaging. The injected substance can then be traced using some sensing device specifically for the kind of radiation released from the substance. In cases where the diseased tissues go beyond normal surgical methods, the radiation is applied to get rid of dead tissues (Christian & Waterstram, 2013).
There are different kinds of radiation used in the field of medicine. Most procedures in nuclear medicine classically exploit radionuclide or radiopharmaceutical radiation. The radioactive isotope is used which is linked to some chemicals. It produces an image in a different area of the body. The radiation stays in the patient’s body for a very short time since the isotope decays after a few hours (Christian & Waterstram, 2013).
The patients are prepared for nuclear medicine procedures by giving them small quantities of radioisotope. It is carried out orally or through injection for the purpose of enhancing the visualization of chosen organs. After the accumulation of radioisotope in the body area under study, the camera is then placed close to that area, and the scanning process is started. After the assessment by a physician who communicates the results to the patient’s doctor, the images are viewed. For safety concerns, pregnant women ought to consult with the physicians prior to undergoing nuclear medicine examination. In addition, patients should also ensure that their physicians are aware of the medications they are currently taking as well as if they are a nursing mother prior to going through examination process. Therefore, preparation for nuclear medicine examination differs due to variation in every study (Christian & Waterstram, 2013, Bentourkia, 2012).
Nuclear medicine has some advantages and limitations. Advantages: The use of ionizing radiation has resulted to key progress in the diagnosis along with treatment of patients especially with cancer. The innovations thus have brought about increased rate of survival in addition to improved quality of life. It is also possible to detect breast cancer at an early stage when there are still chances of treating it. The use of needle biopsies enhances extra accuracy and safety with more information. Cancers that have spread can be detected by bone and liver scans. Half of patients with cancer are treated with radiation with the number of those cured continuing to increase. Radioisotopes are also used to eliminate or reduce pain connected with prostrate or breast cancer that has spread to the bone. Thyroid cancers are also treated by use of iodine 131(Christian & Waterstram, 2013, Lee & Baum, 2012).
Limitations: There is no nuclear medicine used to eliminate or treat cancer. It only uses a different mechanism in order to fight cancer. The use of intravenous iodine contrast substances for ct scan can affect thyroid scans and uptake. Nuclear medicine also uses fewer doses of radiation, and that affects grown adults less than children. Radiation can also damage the genetic material-DNA directly or indirectly. The body cells can either be destroyed or altered in terms of functions or growth via deviations that might not be evident for a long time. However, our body cells do have some inbuilt mechanism for rearing the damaged DNA by radiation. A large dose of radiation to the entire body at once can bring about patient’s death (Christian & Waterstram, 2013, Lee & Baum, 2012).
The ailments typically diagnosed and treated through nuclear medicine procedures include heart scans, bone scans, thyroid uptake and scans and pulmonary scans which all utilizes less quantity of radiation. Nuclear medicine is majorly employed in the diagnosis of diseases, not their treatment. Nevertheless, radiation can also be used to treat prostrate, breast and thyroid cancers among others although may not completely eliminate these diseases (Bentourkia, 2012).
There are various applications of nuclear medicine relating to nuclear medicine therapy with radiopharmaceuticals. The first area of application is in the area of physiological evaluation where it allows functional analysis of many features of both normal and abnormal physiologies. In this case, the brain operation is examined using particular carbon 11 labeled agents. The fluorine-18-labeled compounds are used in the analysis of brain deterioration in addition to cognitive function (Lee & Baum, 2012).
The next application area is in the disease detection and treatment response. Here, differences in RNA, DNA and protein expression amid patients suffering from cancer or heart disease including healthy individuals can be detected through their blood, feces, urine and sputum with the aid of omic analyses. It will permit detection of the disease at subclinical levels that are particularly crucial for the management of cancer given that current tests are now approaching sensitivity levels. Molecular imaging is the most exciting part of this application area at present and in future (Lee & Baum, 2012).
Nuclear medicine also helps in the exploitation of nuclear energy by the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) for the promotion of human health. The AEC that later became department of energy (DOE) gave support to high risk research and nuclear medicine advancement technology. The department has also provided radionuclides to researchers including chemists, engineers’ physicians and others. The employment of radioactive iodine in the treatment of thyroid cancer, measuring thyroid functions, diagnosing thyroid disease, and other treatments were some of the earliest applications of nuclear medicine (Lee & Baum, 2012).
References
Christian, P. E., & Waterstram-Rich, K. M. (2013). Nuclear medicine and PET/CT: technology and techniques. Elsevier Health Sciences.
Bentourkia, M. H. (2012). Understanding by seeing before treating: present and future of medical imaging. Computerized medical imaging and graphics: the official journal of the Computerized Medical Imaging Society, 36(7), 515-518.
Lee, D. S., & Baum, R. P. (2012). Handbook of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging: Principles and Clinical Applications. World Scientific.
