AMI to educate18F-NaF PET imagers due to CMS decision

The Academy of Molecular Imaging (AMI) will broadcast a medical education program entitled “Sodium Fluoride PET bone imaging in cancer patients” on Jan. 19, 2010, to address the needs of nuclear medicine professionals.

On Nov. 30, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) proposed to cover PET imaging with 18F-NaF for the detection of bone metastases, using the coverage with evidence development framework.

If the final decision, expected on or before March 4, 2010, is positive, the coverage would expand cancer patients’ access to PET imaging by providing an alternative to traditional nuclear medicine scans during the protracted worldwide molybdenum shortage, said AMI.

The Institute for Molecular Technologies, a council of the AMI, has recognized that many PET imagers have not routinely provided 18F-NaF imaging in the past.

The Jan. 19, 2010 Webcast, features David Haseley, MD, from Seattle Nuclear Medicine and PET/CT Imaging at the Swedish Cancer Institute in Seattle. The Webcast is available at no charge to clinicians who manage cancer patients or who plan to offer 18F-NaF imaging upon coverage approval.

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