A noninvasive test to detect cancer precursors in body fluids has been shown to be able to detect genetic variations that initiate colon cancer, potentially signaling an alternative screening method to the standard colonoscopy, according to a study published Sept. 4 in Cancer Prevention Research.

The Medical Imaging & Technology Alliance (MITA) today applauded the American Association for Thoracic Surgery (AATS) for endorsing the United States Preventive Services Task Force’s (USPSTF) draft recommendation for annual low-dose computed tomography scans (LDCT) for individuals at high-risk of developing lung cancer.

The American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) has selected 10 distinguished members to receive the Fellow of ASTRO designation (FASTRO). The 2013 class of Fellows will receive the recognition during the Awards Ceremony on Tuesday, September 24, at ASTRO’s 55th Annual Meeting, September 22-25, 2013, at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta.

The Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging (SNMMI) is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2013-2015 SNMMI Wagner-Torizuka Fellowship. This two-year fellowship, founded in 2008 by the late Henry N. Wagner, Jr., MD, and the late Kanji Torizuka, MD, PhD, is designed to provide extensive training and experience in the fields of nuclear medicine and molecular imaging for Japanese physicians in the early stages of their careers.

Recent studies have indicated that epilepsy may be more comprehensively characterized with the help of PET and SPECT, and these modalities could benefit the 1-2 percent of the U.S. population with the neurological disorder, according to a review published online Aug 22 in the Journal of Nuclear Medicine.

Early-stage breast cancer lesions can be detected with F-18 FES PET, but success depends on tumor size and level of disease, according to a study published online Aug. 22 in the Journal of Nuclear Medicine.

For the assessment of hypervascular hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the optimal iodine dose of contrast material for hepatic arterial-dominant phase (HAP) imaging has been shown to be between 567-647 mgl/kg, according to a study published in the September issue of Academic Radiology.

Multiple radiopharmaceuticals in the development pipeline are showing real promise in the realms of oncology, neurology and cardiology.