Molecular Imaging with Glucose Derivatives

October 4, 2005
Location: Nuclear Medicine Library at VGHJim Pattison Pavilion, 855 West 12th Avenue, Vancouver
Presenter: Cara Fisher, University of British Columbia Chemistry Department & PETGroup of TRIUMF

Glucose, a simple sugar, is a basic energy source in the body. The molecular imaging of glucose metabolism using 2-18F-Fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose (FDG) and positron emission tomography (PET) has proved to be a useful tool for cardiology, oncology, and neurology. Unfortunately, FDG and PET are costly and relatively inaccessible, especially in Canada, and FDG has no therapeutic value. This presentation will comprise of a basic explanation of how glucose metabolism imaging works, and the advantages and disadvantages of FDG and PET. A summary of our work to find diagnostic alternatives and therapeutic analogues of FDG will be given, including a discussion on the importance of information obtained from the data of imaging experiments.