Conveners
PET/MR and SPECT/MR systems and applications: Part 1
- Nicola Belcari
PET/MR and SPECT/MR systems and applications: Part 2
- Marco Carminati
Addressing the increasing demands for improved cancer diagnosis and personalized medicine, the H2020 EU project HYPMED aims to develop a PET-RF insert, which is compatible to a 1.5T-MRI Philips Ingenia.
The insert targets the needs of enhanced breast cancer diagnosis, namely offering high-resolution imaging, increased systemsensitivity and also high system-integrity. The PET insert comprises...
The challenge of the screening and follow-up of subjects at risk of dementia is becoming of crucial importance for the sustainability of their assistance by national healthcare. Although imaging biomarkers are playing an essential role for assisting diagnosis and prognosis of dementias, several MR biomarkers are still under evaluation in terms of technical and clinical suitability. Recently...
The Unity 1.5T MR-linac has clinically been introduced to provide stereotactic precision for moving targets. We are now developing an integrated 1.5T PET/MRI system with identical MRI performance for planning of MR-linac treatments. The system offers 70 cm bore size and includes PET detectors mounted in the gap of a split gradient coil using the Hyperion III platform. Recently, the first ring...
PET-MRI provides excellent soft-tissue contrast combined with visualization of metabolic processes. Especially, brain-imaging benefits from organ-dedicated scanners providing high sensitivity and homogenous spatial resolution. The BrainPET 7T project aims to build a PET insert for human imaging with a particular emphasis on UHF MR-compatibility, imaging of non-proton nuclei, and...
The INSERT (INtegrated SPECT/MRI for Enhanced stratification of brain tumors in Radio-chemoTherapy) is the world's first clinical SPECT-MRI brain imaging system. Here we demonstrate its use within a clinical MRI environment for the first time. The INSERT has been evaluated as a stand-alone SPECT scanner and preclinical designs demonstrate the feasibility of simultaneous SPECT-MRI. Customised...
Accurate correction for photon attenuation is essential for quantitative simultaneous positron emission tomography/magnetic resonance imaging (PET/MRI). Several methods have been developed to derive attenuation maps based on MRI or emission data, but they all have limitations affecting their robustness and general applicability, especially in whole-body PET/MRI. As an alternative, a...
The SAFIR Dual Ring Prototype is a high-performance preclinical PET-Insert designed to operate at activities of up to 500 MBq within the bore of a 7T Bruker BioSpin MRI system.
It features an axial coverage of 35.6 mm with a coincidence resolving time of 194 ps FWHM, an energy resolution of 13.8% FWHM and has been fully characterized according to the 2008 NEMA NU-4 standard.
The focus of...
We propose a retrofitted alignment apparatus that attaches to the MRI’s motor-driven automated positioning system and enables simultaneous PET-MRI at 9.4T with a stand-alone microPET ring. The system leverages 3D printing technology to achieve stable alignment between the two modalities, consistent placement of animals, and rapid reconfiguration between PET-MRI and MRI-only experiments.
