PET scans are the preferred diagnostic tool for diagnosing and staging a number of serious health conditions such as:

• Cancer: PET scans can reveal the presence and stage of certain types of cancer (e.g., prostate, thyroid, and colorectal), to show whether and where it has spread, as well as to help doctors decide on treatment.

• Alzheimer’s disease: PET scans visualize plaques present in the brain, which are prime suspects in damaging and killing nerve cells in Alzheimer’s disease.

• Heart disease: A PET scan can help detect, assess, and treat heart diseases such as coronary artery disease (CAD).

• Lung nodules: PET scans can detect lung nodules that may be missed by other tests such as MRIs.

In many cases, PET scans can detect diseases earlier and more accurately than other scans such as MRI or CT. Patients lives have been saved or extended by the information gleaned from a PET scan.

In some cases, PET scans can even be used in place of more invasive procedures such as biopsies.

A CT or MRI scan can assess the size and shape of body organs and tissue, but neither type can show how these are functioning.

Nuclear medicine scans, such as PET and SPECT, reveal changes in biochemical processes rather than physical changes in anatomy.

PET scans may also be combined with other tools; in such cases the test may be referred to as PET/CT or PET/MRI.

In the past, patients may have been sent for MRI or CT scans or invasive biopsies, when a PET scan would have been more appropriate for their specific case. In Ontario, PET scan usage is recommended for specific indications. For these indications, PET scan use has been thoroughly evaluated and has demonstrated impact on patient management.

By increasing awareness that PET scans are available and simple to order in Ontario, we can lighten demand on our overburdened MRI and CT scanners and reduce patient wait times.

The More PETs Coalition is working to raise awareness among doctors and patients that this best-in-class technology is available and ready to use to improve patient care in Ontario!

In recent years, Ontario has significantly streamlined the process for ordering a PET scan. Cancer Care Ontario maintains a list of indications for which PET scans may easily be ordered - these indications are supported by rigorous evaluation that has demonstrated impact on patient management.

If a doctor wishes to order a PET scan for an indication that is not on the list, they may fill out a short application to the PET Access Program, which will be reviewed by a committee of doctors within a matter of days.