An Introduction to the Physics of Nuclear Medicine (Second Edition)

by Laura Harkness-Brennan

Overview

Nuclear medicine is a medical speciality involving the application of radioactive substances in the diagnosis and treatment of disease. Procedures that involve the production and administration of radionuclides to the body for either diagnostic or therapeutic purposes fall under the remit of this field.

This course text provides an introduction to key topics in nuclear medicine, from the fundamental principles of radioactivity through to the production and use of radionuclides for diagnostic and therapeutic procedures. New to the second edition is a chapter on the use of Monte Carlo methods in nuclear medicine, new sections on machine learning and intraoperative nuclear probes and recent updates about novel radiopharmaceutical production. The book can be used as an informative supplement in general physics undergraduate programmes and masters postgraduate level medical physics.

Key Features:

• Uses text, graphs, illustrative figures and equations to provide readers with an insight into the performance and capabilities of systems currently used in hospitals
• Covers emerging and novel techniques and technologies in nuclear medicine
• New chapter added on Monte Carlo techniques in nuclear medicine which is gaining in importance due to enhanced computing power
• Example questions provided throughout with solutions so that readers can test their understanding of key concepts

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780750351973
Publisher:	Institute of Physics Publishing
Publication date:	04/14/2023
Series:	IPEM-IOP Series in Physics and Engineering in Medicine and Biology
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	125
File size:	9 MB

About the Author

Laura Harkness-Brennan is Associate Pro Vice Chancellor for Research and Impact in the Faculty of Science and Engineering at the University of Liverpool. For 3 years, Professor Harkness-Brennan has been leading a national STFC funded Cancer Diagnosis Research Network, promoting the formation of interdisciplinary teams to address key challenges in cancer diagnosis. In 2010 she won the Shell and Institute of Physics Award for the Very Early Career Woman physicist of the year, and in 2015 was highly commended in the UK Women of the Future awards (Science category).

Table of Contents

1. Introduction – minor changes to 1st edition highlight the new material covered in the 2nd edition

2. A brief history of nuclear medicine – no changes proposed to 1st edition

3. Radioactivity – no changes proposed to 1st edition

4. Radionuclide production – minor changes proposed to 1st edition

5. Radiation interactions with matter – minor changes proposed to 1st edition

6. Radiation detection – no changes proposed to 1st edition

7. Imaging – significant changes to include new sections on Computed Tomography, Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography (SPECT), Positron Emission Tomography (PET) and multimodality imaging and the use of intra-operative nuclear probes

8. Radionuclide therapy – moderate changes to 1st edition to include emerging radiopharmaceuticals, beyond those already discussed in the 1st edition

9. Monte-Carlo techniques in nuclear medicine – a new chapter that will outline Monte-Carlo and how this is used to design and calibrate medical imaging systems for nuclear medicine, as well as for internal dosimetry.