NAMIBIA NUCLEAR IMAGING
LEADING IN NUCLEAR MEDICINE
Why nuclear medicine?
Nuclear medicine is a medical specialty that uses small amounts of radioactive material to diagnose or treat a variety of diseases, including cancer, heart disease, and other abnormalities within the body. Nuclear medicine provides for the detection of the disease, determination of the extent of the disease and monitoring of treatment with high accuracy and sensitivity, based on the function of the organ and/or tissue. This is how nuclear medicine differs from an X-ray, ultrasound or any other diagnostic test that determines the presence of disease based on structural/anatomical appearance.
Nuclear medicine procedures are non-invasive, usually painless, and help physicians diagnose and treat medical conditions using radioactive materials called radiopharmaceuticals or radiotracers which are normally either injected into a vein, swallowed or inhaled as a gas and eventually accumulate in the organ or area of your body being examined, where it gives off energy in the form of gamma rays.
Tc-99m MAG3 Renogram
THYROID SCINTIGRAPHY
A thyroid scintigraphy uses Tc-99m pertechnetate which is an iodine analog to examine the structure and function of the thyroid gland by assessing the Na/I symporter's function, thereby differentiating between the different causes of thyrotoxicosis and determining the functional status of a thyroid nodule.
LUNG (V/Q) SCINTIGRAPHY
A pulmonary ventilation/perfusion scintigraphy involves the measurement of the ventilation and perfusion in the lungs for the detection of pulmonary embolism and evaluation of the extent of the resolution of PE post-treatment for the purpose of risk stratification.
SENTINEL NODE MAPPING
The sentinel node mapping technique was first introduced in Namibia in 2003 after a workshop hosted by the IAEA and attended by national and international experts. It is used to identify the first lymph node(s) in which a tumor would drain into and metastasize. It is commonly used for breast cancer, melanoma and recent research support its use in head and neck, as well as prostate and gynecological cancers.