AI method reduces radiation exposure via virtual PET/CT images

The findings are good news for cancer patients, who often must undergo many PET/CT exams throughout diagnosis and treatment, noted a team led by Kevin Ma, PhD, of the National Cancer Institute in Bethesda, MD.

“The CT portion of the exam contributes about half the radiation exposure yet is redundant to a large degree,” Ma explained in a June 12 presentation. “Artificial intelligence methods could be used to generate virtual CT scans that provide the anatomic localization of PET activity but do not expose the patient to additional radiation.”

The investigators used 305 PET/CT studies…