New 'Double-Barreled Shotgun' for Imaging

As many of us found out during last semester's project, PET & MRI are both useful tools for imaging. PET is good at providing views of processes in the body, while MRI is better at giving us a look at structures. Together, they can provide a great view for healthcare professionals. Until now, however, that hasn't been possible, because the strong magnetic field used in MRI interfered with the photomultiplier tubes used for PET.

Researchers at UCLA solved the problem by substituting silicon avalanche photodiode detectors for the photomultiplier tubes. Since the MRI's magnetic fields didn't affect the new detectors, the two imaging techniques could be combined into one scanner.

This should prove very helpful to healthcare professionals by giving them a simultaneous view of both structure and processes. The scanner was built to help researchers be able to understand what is happening inside a tumor, as it shows them the tumor, and the activity inside it.

http://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/news/article/17434