General Information About The Department
Nuclear Medicine is a clinical branch that uses radioactive materials as medication for diagnosis and treatment at a molecular level. There are multifarious diagnostic methods applied to heart, lungs, bone and
endocrine diseases. Additionally, it plays an important role especially in the follow-up of cancer patients by personalized and disease-driven treatments updated in recent years. In our Nuclear Medicine Clinic, all
the medical practices are carried out by minimum intervention as far as possible with safety and without pain. All the procedures are planned considering radiation exposure in the way of being beneficial to
patients. Thus, the procedure are not applied to pregnant patients and patients with the probability of pregnancy unless it is vital. Our Nuclear Medicine Department is able to provide a full range of both diagnostic and therapeutic procedures with our experienced staff including 2 Professors, 3 Associate Professors and 10 Nuclear Medicine Physicians.
Diagnosis and Treatment Procedures:
In Nuclear Medicine Clinic, all polyclinic examinations, scintigraphy-PET/BT investigations and other treatment processes of inpatients and outpatients are carried out by specialist physicians. The
diagnostic procedures generally under ''scintigraphy'' provides information about the functional conditions of several organs and systems. Cardiovascular diseases, coronary artery disease diagnosis,
detection of infarctus after heart attack, angioplasty, patient selection for angioplasty and coronary bypass surgery, evaluation of treatment efficiency, in Oncology; detection of tumor location, tumor
staging, evaluation of response to treatment, in Orthopedics; diagnosis of bone infection (osteomyelitis), detection of trauma, diagnosis of joint diseases and detection of their prevalence as well as bony cancers
or cancers spreaded to bones, in Nephrology; detection of native and transplanted kidney functions, detection of ureteral stricture, diagnosis of hypertension caused by renal artery stenosis, pyelonephritis (kidney infection) and scar tissue diagnosis, In Neurology, detection of epileptic focus, detection of cerebral death, diagnosis of Alzheimer's Disease, in Pulmonary Medicine; diagnosis of pulmonary embolism, evaluation of the functions of transplanted lungs, other fields; detection of lymphatic obstruction, investigation of focus of infection in the body, gall bladder inflammation (acute cholecystitis), acute gastrointestinal bleeding, Radioactive Iodine Therapy (I-131), outpatient treatment of individuals with toxic goiter, treatment of residual thyroid tissue and metastasis after thyroidectomy, Y-90 Microsphere Treatment, reduction of tumor size and symptoms in liver cancers.
Featured Services:
We have all the equipment essential for all featured services in our department such as PET/BT (Positron Emission Tomography/Computed Tomography), SPECT/BT (Single Photon Emission Computerized Tomography/Computed Tomography), Cardiac SPECT Camera, Thyroid Uptake System, Gamma Probe.
The Units of Nuclear Medicine:
Oncology Nuclear Medicine Unit
Cardiovascular Surgery Nuclear Medicine Unit
Treatment Unit; it provides service on The Main Mass.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is radiation exposure harmful?
The radioactive materials applied for diagnosis are safe thanks to doses that don't damage any tissue or organ. Doses and tissue damage effect of radioactive materials applied for treatment purposes are higher. Taken
the advantage of it in cancer treatment by considering harm–benefit assessment of patient follow-up and treatment.
Can pregnant women and children benefit from those?
Radiation exposure is not applied to pregnant patients or patients with the probability of pregnancy unless it is vital as radiation exposure harms developing tissues and organs more. For children, harm-benefit assessment is considered.
What to expect after the procedure?
The radioactive material doesn't have any effect of its own. It is adviced that patients should be isolated from healthy people depending upon the duration of exposure and the characteristics of the radioactive material in the body.
Diagnostic Procedures
PET/CT: There are 2 PET/CT cameras in our department for following diagnostic procedures:
-18-F FDG PET/CT imaging in Oncology, Neuro-Psychiatry, Infection/Inflammation and Cardiovascular imaging
-68-Ga DOTATATE PET/CT imaging for neuroendocrine tumors
-68-Ga PSMA PET/CT imaging for prostate cancer
SPECT/CT: There are 3 integrated SPECT/CT, 3 SPECT and 2 cardiac dedicated SPECT cameras in our department for following diagnostic procedures:
-Myocardial perfusion SPECT imaging, MUGA ventricular function scanning
-Lung ventilation and perfusion imaging
-Bone Scintigraphy in oncological and orthopedic conditions,
-Thyroid Scintigraphy
-Parathyroid Scintigraphy
-Stomach, Biliary, Liver and Spleen Scintigraphy
-Labelled Leukocyte Scintigraphy
-Renal Cortical and Dynamic Imaging
-Therapeutic Procedures
In our department there is a facility with the capacity of 10 patient beds designed for following treatment procedures:
-131-I Radionuclide therapy for thyroid cancer
-131-I Radionuclide therapy for hyperthyroidism
-131-I MlBG therapy for neuroblastoma and malignant pheochromocytoma
-177-Lu-DOTATATE therapy for neuroendocrine tumors
-177-Lu-PSMA therapy for prostate cancer
-90-Y Radioembolization therapy for hepatic tumors