Evidence-based positron emission tomography

The clinical applications and investigations of positron emission tomography (PET) using F-18 fluoro-2-deoxyglucose (¹⁸F-FDG) have been dramatically increasing over the past 10 years. The main cause of this boom is the development of the PET/computed tomography (CT) scanner, which can provide both the metabolic and anatomic information of a cancer. PET/CT has been shown to have a better diagnostic accuracy in tumors than either CT or conventional PET. The individual practitioner makes a clinical decision according to his or her experience. Different chance of exposure to evolving medical technologies makes different behavior for the practitioners to order new modalities. Underutilizing new technology does not offer enough clinical information leading to inappropriate decision making, and overutilization of technology increases medical cost. PET based on research gives the appropriate amount of information to practitioners and helps them to make the best medical decisions.