Molecular Imaging in Focus: SNMMI: Can a New Total Body PET Scanner Slash Scan Times and Bolster Sensitivity?

An emerging total body positron emission tomography (PET) imaging scanner may facilitate up to an 83 percent reduction in PET/CT scan time without detracting from image quality, according to new research presented at the Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging (SNMMI) conference.

For the prospective study, researchers evaluated the utility of a long axial field of view (LAFOV) total body PET/CT scanner (Omni 128 cm PET/CT, GE HealthCare) in comparison to the short axial field of view (SAFOV) PET/CT scanners Vision 600 (Siemens Healthineers) and Discovery 710 (GE HealthCare). The cohort was comprised of 25 patients who had dual screening for oncological PET/CT exams, according to the study.

The study authors found a mean 83 percent reduction in PET/CT scan time with the LAFOV device in comparison to the other scanners as well as higher ratings for multiple measures of image quality.

In a recent interview with Diagnostic Imaging at the SNMMI conference, lead study author Alicia Corlett, NMT, noted that up to 50 PET imaging exams a day are performed at her facility with exam times ranging from 15 to 45 minutes. Now with the use of Omni 128 cm PET/CT device, the PET scan times are down to two to three minutes, according to Corlett.

“ … The best outcome that we had from the trial was to really demonstrate that that reduced scan time without sacrificing any image quality,” pointed out Corlett, the lead nuclear medicine technologist at Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre in Melbourne, Australia.

The study authors also found that the LAFOV scanner detected more lesions than the SAFOV platforms in 68 percent of the cohort.

(Editor’s note: For additional content from the SNMMI conference, click here.)

Corlett cited the combination of the extended field of view to 128 cm and the bismuth germanium oxide (BGO) detectors with the LAFOV platform.

“One of the really novel things about the camera system is the BGO crystals that is a bit of a deviation away from the lutetium-based crystals that a lot of the other vendors are making, so the increase in stopping power means that we're actually able to bring down the injected doses of radioactivity as well, because it's just so much more sensitive,” maintained Corlett.

(Editor’s note: For related content, see “FDA Clears Next-Generation AI-Powered PET Software,” “FDA Clears Emerging High-Resolution PET Scanner” and “Can AI Enhance PET/MRI Assessment for Extraprostatic Tumor Extension in Patients with PCa?”)

Reference

1. Corlett A, Pain C, Papa N, et al. Evaluation of quality of imaging on a next-generation total body PET scanner in comparison to conventional PET (EQUIP study). Presented at the Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging (SNMMI) conference, May 30-June 2, 2026, Los Angeles. Available at: https://jnm.snmjournals.org/content/67/supplement_1/261772 .