CT scans provide physicians with a very clear view into how the body looks on the inside. It creates photos of the body's structure with amazing clarity allowing precise localization of any structural abnormality.

The combination of PET and CT into one machine has proven to be a remarkable advance in medicine. In fact, Time magazine awarded the inventors of the PET/CT scanner the distinction of the Medical Science Invention of the Year for 2000. Today, hundreds of PET/CT scanners are installed in the U.S.

PET/CT has been proven to help physicians pinpoint small tumors throughout the body and find other abnormalities in the heart, coronary arteries and the brain. Very often combined PET/CT can find these abnormalities sooner than is possible with CT or MRI alone. In addition, PET/CT:

- Reduces the number of invasive procedures.

- Avoids unnecessary surgery.

- Locates previously unknown metastases and other cancers.

- Eliminates multiple tests.

- More accurately guides necessary biopses.

- Helps physicians establish more effective therapies for their patients.

- Diagnoses disease before structural changes have occurred.

- Guides radiation therapy planning.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the federal agency that administers the Medicare and Medicaid programs, recently stated in its coverage policy that "PET scanning, when used appropriately, can decrease hospital costs incurred, such as extended length-of-stay costs, unnecessary surgical costs, and the cost of ineffective combinations of multiple imaging techniques."

Trident Molecular Imaging is dedicated to improving patient access to PET/CT scanners and is therefore committed to developing multiple imaging centers in various cities. The nearest Trident-owned PET/CT center is Trident PET of Fayette, 1275 Highway 54 West, Suite 102, in Fayetteville. Phone 770-719-3754 or contact [email protected] for more information.

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