Mode: Regular

Nuclear Medicine is a medical specialty in which radioactive elements are used in the form of medicines (radiopharmaceuticals) for diagnosis, treatment and also for the study of various biochemical processes in the body with the help of highly sophisticated instruments. Radiopharmaceuticals are used in very small quantities (i.e. nanograms, 1 nanogram=10-9 grams, i.e., one in one thousand million of a gram) and practically they don’t have side effects. Nuclear Medicine techniques help to identify the functions of various organs at the sub-cellular/molecular level and enable us to deliver treatment directed only to the diseased cells/tissue (targeted therapy). This minimizes radiation exposure to normal tissues and organs. Whole body scanning is done to assess the extent of the disease prior to treatment, especially in cancer. When compared to other diagnostic modalities such as CT-scan, which utilize ionizing radiation, whole body scanning is possible in Nuclear Medicine with substantially lower exposure to ionizing radiation. Only a single injection of radiopharmaceutical is needed for whole body scan. Nuclear Medicine is a relatively new specialty in the field of Medicine which utilizes unsealed source of radioisotopes for the diagnosis and management of various diseases especially cancer. Nuclear Medicine plays an important role in the diagnosis and treatment of various thyroid disorders including thyroid cancer.