Princess Alexandra Hospital is now home to a new cutting-edge Positron Emission Tomography (PET) scanner which means patients will receive more accurate, and faster scans.
The advanced technology produces higher quality images than ever before, that can be taken in a shorter amount of time, with a reduced radiation dose compared to the previous scanner.
The $4 million piece of machinery has been installed in a new purpose-built location inside PA Hospital.
It replaces the original scanner from 13 years ago which has been the most highly used PET scanner in the state.
PA Hospital Nuclear Medicine Technologist James Turner said PET CT scans first began at PA Hospital in 2011.
“Back then we performed five scans per day on average,” said James.
“Fast forward to 2025, and the team of technologists, radiographers, medical staff, nurses and administration staff now work together to perform up to 24 scans each day for different clinics across the hospital.
“Now, we’re expecting that number to increase with the digital PET allowing for faster scans, which means care for even more patients.
“We’re very excited to have this new machine at the PA Hospital, but we’re even more excited for the benefits it will bring to our patients.”
The new scanner is the only one of its kind within Metro South Health and will benefit all patients referred to the service across oncology, haematology, urology, neurology, and cardiology.
PET works by combining technologies to reveal the metabolic differences between normal and diseased tissue, which is a valuable tool for diagnosis, staging and restaging of multiple cancer conditions.
The arrival of the clinical digital PET/CT complements the existing PET/MRI, making PA Hospital one of the most comprehensive imaging facilities in the country.
The replacement project is thanks to a total $9.9 million investment from the Sustaining Capital Program funded by the Queensland Government with the additional money funding infrastructure upgrades needed to house the scanner.