Sassoon Road
Sassoon Road
Hinjawadi
Wanworie
Sassoon Road
Sassoon Road
Hinjawadi
Wanworie
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Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging

Established in 1996, the Department of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging at Ruby Hall Clinic was the first hospital-owned nuclear medicine department in Maharashtra, located outside of Mumbai, marking a significant milestone
The department is at the forefront of the application of chemicals mixed with small radioactive isotopes, or radiopharmaceuticals, to target particular organs in order to reat disease.
The department now has a state-of-the-art dual-head gamma camera system for precise imaging and diagnostics, having upgraded its Gamma Camera Systems three times since its founding. Our team consists of the best nuclear medicine physicians and nuclear medicine speacialists, who focus on specialised nuclear medicine.

Digital
PET-CT

The Latest Technology

Ruby Hall Clinic upgraded to Digital PET-CT, the newest advancement in cancer diagnosis, after ten years of using time-of-flight technology. Ruby Hall Clinic is now the first in Asia to have this cutting-edge technology installed thanks to GE Healthcare’s Discovery MI. This puts the clinic up against some of the best cancer centres in the world, including Stanford, Mayo Clinic, Mass General, Dana-Farber, and Memorial Sloan Kettering in the United States.

Uses and Application

  • Early Diagnosis
  • Therapy Evaluation
  • Staging
  • Follow up Surveillance
  • Re-staging
  • Early Diagnosis
  • Staging
  • Re-staging
  • Therapy Evaluation
  • Follow up Surveillance

FAQs

  • Fix an appointment one day prior
  • Six hours of fasting (only water is allowed)
  • Avoid working out or exerting yourself on the previous day
  • Bring all the test reports and treatment details on the day of the test
  • If you are diabetic, your blood sugar needs to be controlled before the test
  • Renal function test (serum creatinine) should be done for CT contrast study
  • After the registration formalities, the patient will be prepared for the test.
  • The patient’s blood sugar will be checked. The patient will then be injected with 18 FDG (radioactive glucose), after which the patient rests for 1 hour in an isolation room
  • After an hour, the patient is placed for the scanning, which takes less than 15 minutes
  • The total procedure may take two and a half to three hours
  • The images are reviewed by a Nuclear Medicine and Radiology Consultant, which combined prepares the final report
  • This is available to the patient generally next day
To schedule an appointment, please call 02066455265 or 02066455245. Our receptionist will help you by providing a convenient appointment between Monday to Saturday. We are located at the Ruby Hall Clinic campus in the Nuclear Medicine Department, in the Superspecialty Building.

SPECT-CT

FAQs

Nuclear medicine is a medical speciality in which the diagnosis and treatment of human diseases are made by the use of a small number of radioactive tracers. After administration of the tracer, images of the organ of interest in the patient’s body are obtained with a gamma camera that shows the localisation of the tracer in the organ, and physicians interpret them for the diagnosis of disease. Certain diseases are treated with high-energy radiotracers in nuclear medicine based on the concept of that high dose.
Depending on the study, a tiny dose of a radiotracer is given intravenously, orally, or by inhalation. In certain instances, the patient might require medication or physical activity to widen the arteries in the heart. In order to create an image, the tracer targets the organ and emits gamma rays that are picked up by a specialised camera. Depending on the study, imaging can happen right away, within hours, or even days. It can take anywhere from 15 to 120 minutes. Most tests involve the patient lying down, but some require sitting. The ‘hot’ (increased tracer) or ‘cold’ (decreased tracer) spots on the images are indicators of abnormalities that nuclear physicians look for.
The tracer is administered most commonly by injection through the vein and, for some tests, orally or by inhalation.
It depends on the type of test. Since the localisation of the radiotracer varies with the physiological behaviour of the organ and the characteristics of the tracer, the time for optimal localisation varies from organ to organ. Sometimes two tests are needed for some disease entities, such as with cardiac studies. For example, a lung scan needs only half an hour, a heart study may take 2–3 hours, and yet other tests may take 24-48 hours to complete.
No preparation time needed. Total test time takes about 1-1.5 hours. After initial formalities, the patient will be taken for scanning. The scanning involves intravenous injection of a small amount of radioactive tracer (not a contrast) and serial images of kidneys for 30 min (1 image every min). Patient has to sleep quietly while the Gamma Camera takes pictures of the kidneys. In kids and infants, the test can take more time, as it involves putting IV lines sometimes, by experts, or by putting them to sleep using mild sedatives. Reports are received the same day.

Therapies

In addition to being used for medical diagnosis, radioisotopes are also used for therapeutic purposes. Patients have been effectively treated with radioactive iodine for over 50 years, experiencing a 30 to 40-year disease-free period after treatment for hyperthyroidism and thyroid cancer. Today, neuroblastoma, pheochromocytomas, prostate cancer, medullary thyroid carcinoma, and neuroendocrine tumours appear to be amenable to similar treatments. In addition, our department provides radiation synovectomy, bone pain relief, and treatment for primary liver cancers, liver metastases, and liver cancers.
  • Hyperthyroidism, Toxic Nodular Goitres
  • Thyroid Cancer: Papillary, Follicular, and Medullary Types
  • 177Lu – DOTA for NET
  • 177 Lu PSMA for Prostate Cancer
  • Bone: Pain Palliation in Cancer Patients
  • Liver Cancers (SIR microspheres)
  • Hyperthyroidism, Toxic Nodular Goitres
  • Thyroid Cancer: Papillary, Follicular, and Medullary Types
  • 177Lu – DOTA for NET
  • 177 Lu PSMA for Prostate Cancer
  • Bone: Pain Palliation in Cancer Patients
  • Liver Cancers (SIR microspheres)

FAQs

When a patient receives a high dose of radioactive medicine, the body gives out gamma rays, which are not good for the normal public and your relatives. Most of this radioactive medicine will be thrown out of your body through urine in 24 to 48 hours.
In the first 24 to 48 hours, most of the unwanted radiation will be thrown out of the body through urine. As per BARC & AERB guidelines, you will be discharged when you are safe for your relatives and the public.
There will be circumstances in which your relatives will be permitted to enter the isolation room. If the patient is bedridden and requires assistance for doing their daily routine, then, as per regulatory guidelines, your relatives can enter the isolation room for the same but should leave as soon as the required assistance is done
No, belongings are not allowed inside. We will provide most of the essential required things, including disposable clothes, linen, towels, and a small utility kit. You can only carry your mobile phone inside.
The hospital will provide patients with all their meals, including breakfast and high tea. You can carry some additional soft drinks and juices (stored in the refrigerator in the room) for more fluid intake.