A new imaging breakthrough could soon change how doctors find cancer, bone disease, and heart problems. UC Davis has secured a $2.5 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to advance PET-enabled Dual-Energy CT, a first-of-its-kind hybrid method that sharpens medical scans without adding new machines or radiation.
How the Breakthrough Works
PET/CT scans already help doctors by pairing two strengths: CT shows the body’s structure, while PET highlights areas where cells are active. The problem is that CT usually runs at one energy level. That makes it tough to tell tissues like bone, marrow, and tumors apart.
Professor Guobao Wang and his team solved this. They use PET data itself to create a second, high-energy CT image. Combining that with the standard CT scan produces dual-energy imaging. This lets doctors see not just where disease is active but also what those tissues are made of.
Why It Matters
The new approach promises three major benefits:
- Cancer detection: Sharper separation of healthy and cancerous tissue.
- Bone health: Better measurement of bone marrow activity.
- Heart disease: Clearer insights into inflammation and cardiovascular risk.
Because the technique works on many current scanners, hospitals don’t need expensive upgrades. Patients won’t face extra radiation, and doctors will get richer details in a single scan.
The Bigger Picture
The team is testing the method with EXPLORER, the world’s first total-body PET scanner, co-developed at UC Davis. If trials succeed, this innovation could help doctors track tumors more precisely, adjust treatments faster, and bring advanced care to more communities.
“This is a major step forward,” said Wang. “By merging PET and CT in this way, we give doctors a sharper, more detailed view of disease.”
With continued progress, patients may see this technology in hospitals within a few years. The result: faster answers, smarter treatment choices, and better outcomes for people facing cancer and other serious diseases.
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Article derived from: Winn, S. (2025, August 23). New hybrid imaging breakthrough could transform detection of cancer and other diseases. News. https://health.ucdavis.edu/news/headlines/new-hybrid-imaging-breakthrough-could-transform-detection-of-cancer-and-other-diseases/2025/08
