• The Korean Journal of Nuclear Medicine Technology
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.71-75
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• 2013

Purpose: Currently, decrement revision using LDCT is used in PET/CT. But cold artifacts are often found in decrement revision image by mismatch between LDCT image and Emission image near diaphragm due to patient's respiration. This research studied reduction of cold artifact by patient's respiration using CTAC Shift among revision methods. Materials and Methods: From March to September in 2012, 30 patients who had cold artifacts by respiration were targeted using PET/CT Discovery 600 (GE Healthcare, MI, USA) equipment. Patients with cold artifacts were additionally scan in diaphragm area, and the image shown cold artifacts at whole body test were revised using CTAC Shift. Cold artifacts including image, additional scan image and CTAC Shift revision image were evaluated as 1~5 points with naked eye by one nuclear medicine expert, 4 radiotechnologists with over 5 year experience. Also, standard uptake value of 3 images was compared using paired t-test. Results: Additional scan image and CTAC Shift revision image received relatively higher score in naked eye evaluation than cold artifacts including image. The additional scan image and CTAC Shift revision image had high correlation as the results of ANOVA test of standard uptake value and did not show significant difference. Conclusion: When cold artifacts are appeared by patient's respiration at PET/CT, it causes not only patient inconvenience but troubles in test schedule due to extra radiation exposure and time consumption by additional scan. But if CTAC Shift revision image can be acquired with out additional scan, it is considered to be helped in exact diagnosis without unnecessary extra radiation exposure and additional scan.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.14 no.6
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• pp.2958-2965
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• 2013

Purpose : To evaluate the degree of malignancy of incident thyroid lesion found in 18F-FDG PET/CT findings and the usefulness of the method suggested in this study, we applicate the Delay Scan Method that differentiate a false positive benign tumor, inflammation and malignancy, as well as make the criteria of SUV. Materials and Methods : A retrograde study was conducted of 25 patients(1 exception) who were admitted in E hospital to receive 18F-FDG PET/CT examination until Janaary and April of 2008. 18F-FDG PET/CT image photographing was taken in Biograph-Duo made by SIEMENS, after taking normal 18F-FDG PET/CT image(1hr) and then 1hr later we took the thyroid 1 bed-delayed image for the patients who showed abnormal thyroid 18F-FDG uptake and above 2.0 SUV for 2 minutes every 1 bed. For the patients who showed abnormal thyroid uptake and above 2.0 SUV, 1hr later, we took a 1 bed-delayed image and then made a comparative study between measured maxSUV of 1hr-abnormal uptake image and that of 2hr-delayed image. Results : In this 18F-FDG PET/CT study among the patients who showed incidental 18F-FDG thyroidal uptake the number of thyroid cancer was 5(20.8%), all of then showed benign findings. a comparison of results for 18F-FDG PET/CT. the benign patient measured maxSUV in the PET/CT. image(1hr) mean value 5.06maxSUV and delay image(2hr) mean value 5.23maxSUV differences of two value is 0.19maxSUV and the malignantIt patient measured maxSUV in the PET/CT. image(1hr) mean value 9.63maxSUV and delay image(2hr) mean value 10.65maxSUV differences of two value is 10.65maxSUV in Thyroid abnormal uptake patients. Conclusion : in the case of incidental 18F-FDG uptake in thyroid, max SUV of focal thyroid lesion is above 5.0 if 18F-FDG PET/CT examine the delayed images to add, You could see that reasonable diagnostic method useful. to differentiate whether lesions of malignant.

• Journal of radiological science and technology
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.257-260
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• 2006

In order to evaluate the exposure to the radiologic technologists from patients who had been administrated with radiopharmaceuticals, we measured the spatial dose rates at $5{\sim}300\;cm$ from skin surface of patients using an proportional digital surveymeter, 1.5(PET scan) and 4hr(bone scan) after injection. In results, the exposure to the technologists in each procedure was small, compared with the dose limits of the medical workers. However, the dose-response relationships in cancer and hereditary effects, referred to as the stochastic effects, have been assumed linear and no threshold models ; therefore, the exposure should be minimized. For this purpose, the measurements of spatial dose rate distributions were thought to be useful.

• The Journal of the Korean bone and joint tumor society
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.45-49
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• 2012

Skip lesion is not uncommon feature in osteosarcoma and considered to be importantly associated with poor prognosis factor, and thus, should be excised with the main mass. The accurate pre-operative evaluation of the intramedullary extent of osteosarcoma is essential, because it determines the level of bone resection. Among the reliable detection methods, bone scan has a drawback of high rate of false negative results and regional MRI has a difficulty to cover the whole involved lesions without clinical suspicion. The authors report a case of osteosarcoma of the distal femur with a proximal skip lesion that was not detected by either regional MR imaging or by bone scan, but which was visualized by FDG-PET/CT.

• Communications for Statistical Applications and Methods
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.299-309
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• 2001

In PET(Positron Emission Tomography), it is necessary to use transmission scan data in order to estimate the attenuation map. Recently, there are several empirical studies in which one might be able to estimate attenuation map and activity distribution simultaneously with emissive sinogram alone without transmission scan. However, their algorithms are based on the model in which does not include the background counts term, and so is unrealistic. If the background counts component has been included in the model, their algorithm would introduce non-monotonic reconstruction algorithm which results in vain in practice. in this paper, we develop a monotonic and parallelizable algorithm for simultaneous reconstruction of both characteristics and present the validity through some simulations.

• Journal of Digestive Cancer Research
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• v.3 no.1
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• pp.26-29
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• 2015

A 73-year-old male visited our hospital with a complaint of general weakness. He underwent pyloric preserving pancreas-toduodenectomy due to ampullary cancer three years ago. Abdominal computed tomography scan at initial visit revealed multiple hepatic masses. A PET-CT scan showed multiple FDG uptakes at whole liver. He underwent hepatic artery infusion chemotherapy (HAIC) for five cycles. During the first cycle of HAIC, he developed gastric ulcer bleeding and endoscopic hemostasis was done successfully. Esophagogastroduodenoscopy after the 5^th cycle of HAIC revealed ulcer scar at gastric angle. PET-CT scan at 12 months showed no FDG uptake at liver, but a focal FDG uptakes at stomach and peri-gastric lymph nodes were newly developed. Esophagogastroduodenoscopy revealed about 3 cm sized mass at gastric angle. He underwent surgery and pathologic examination revealed large cell neuroendocrine carcinoma. We report a case of gastric large cell neuroendocrine carcinoma with liver metastasis treated with HAIC followed by surgery.

• The Korean Journal of Nuclear Medicine Technology
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.84-89
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• 2013

Purpose: Patients' movement during long image acquisition time for the fusion image of PET-CT (Positron Emission Tomography-Computed Tomography) results in unconformity, and greatly affects the quality of the image and diagnosis. The arm support fixtures provided by medical device companies are not manufactured considering the convenience and safety of the patients; the arm and head movements (horizontal and vertical) during PET/CT scan cause defects in the brain fundus images and often require retaking. Therefore, this study aims to develop patient-compensation device that would minimize the head and arm movements during PET/CT scan, providing comfort and safety, and to reduce retaking. Materials and Methods: From June to July 2012, 20 patients who had no movement-related problems and another 20 patients who had difficulties in raising arms due to shoulder pain were recruited among the ones who visited nuclear medicine department for PET Torso scan. By using Patient Holding System (PHS), different range of motion (ROM) in the arm ($25^{\circ}$, $27^{\circ}$, $29^{\circ}$, $31^{\circ}$, $33^{\circ}$, $35^{\circ}$) was applied to find the most comfortable angle and posture. The manufacturing company was investigated for the permeability of the support material, and the comfort level of applying bands (velcro type) to fix the patient's head and arms was evaluated. To find out the retake frequency due to movements, the amount of retake cases pre/post patient-compensation were analyzed using the PET Torso scan data collected between January to December 2012. Results: Among the patients without movement disorder, 18 answered that PHS and $29^{\circ}$ arm ROM were the most comfortable, and 2 answered $27^{\circ}$ and $31^{\circ}$, respectively. Among the patients with shoulder pain, 15 picked $31^{\circ}$ as the most comfortable angle, 2 picked $33^{\circ}$, and 3 picked $35^{\circ}$. For this study, the handle was manufactured to be adjustable for vertical movements. The material permeability of the patient-compensation device has been verified, and PHS and the compensation device were band-fixed (velcro type) to prevent device movements. A furrow was cut for head fixation to minimize the head and neck movements, fixing bands were attached for the head, wrist, forearm, and upper arm to limit movements. The retake frequency of PET Torso scan due to patient movements was 11.06% (191 cases/1,808 patients) before using the movement control device, and 2.65% (48 cases/1,732 patients) after using the device; 8.41% of the frequency was reduced. Conclusion: Recent change and innovation in the medical environment are making expensive medical image scans, and providing differentiated services for the customers is essential. To secure patient comfort and safety during PET/CT scans, ergonomic patient-compensation devices need to be provided. Therefore, this study manufactured a patientcompensation device with vertically adjustable ergonomic ROM according to the patient's body shape and condition during PET Torso scan. The defects in the basal ganglia images due to arm movements were reduced, and retaking was decreased.

• Progress in Medical Physics
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.134-138
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• 2007

The current PET/CT system with high quality CT images not only increases diagnostic value by providing anatomic localization, but also shortens the acquisition time for attenuation correction than primary PET system. All commercially available PET/CT system uses the CT scan for attenuation correction instead of the transmission scan using radioactive source such as $^{137}Cs,\;^{68}Ge$. However the CT scan may substantially increase the patient dose. The purpose of this study was to evaluate quality of PET images reconstructed by CT attenuation map using various tube currents. in this study, images were acquired for 3D Hoffman brain phantom and cylindrical phantom using GE DSTe PET/CT system. The emission data were acquired for 10 min using phantoms after injecting 44.03 MBq of $^{18}F-FDG$. The CT images for attenuation map were acquired by changing tube current from 10 mA to 95 mA with fixed exposure time of 8 sec and fixed tube voltage of 140 kVp. The PET images were reconstructed using these CT attenuation maps. Image quality of CT images was evaluated by measuring SD (standard deviation) of cylindrical phantom which was filled with water and $^{18}F-FDG$ solution. The PET images were evaluated by measuring the activity ratio between gray matter and white matter in Hoffman phantom images. SDs of CT images decrease by increasing tube current. When PET images were reconstructed using CT attenuation maps with various tube currents, the activity ratios between gray matter and white matter of PET images were almost same. These results indicated that the quality of the PET images using low dose CT data were comparable to the PET images using general dose CT data. Therefore, the use of low dose CT is recommended than the use of general dose CT, when the diagnostic high quality CT is not required. Further studies may need to be performed for other system, since this study is limited to the GE DSTe system used in this study.

• The Korean Journal of Nuclear Medicine Technology
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.15-28
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• 2019

Purpose Nuclear medicine was initially introduced in Korea in 1969 and widely applied to treat hyperthyroidism with $^{131}I$. Also, gamma camera was adopted in 1969 in the first place and its application has been growing continually in many ways. We analyzed long-term trend in nuclear medicine examinations for the last 2 decades. The purpose of this paper is to make predictions and to set both plans and directions on the development of nuclear medicine. Materials and Methods We analyzed the performance of nuclear medicine examinations and therapies performed in Asan Medical Center from 1998 to 2017. Results Results from the last 20 years regarding Bone scan, Renal scan, MUGA scan and $^{18}F$-FPCIT, Bone Mineral Density were on a increase. And Myocardium perfusion SPECT, Thyroid scan, Lung scan were on a decrease while $^{18}F-FDG$ PET maintained on a steady course. Until 2010 there was a positive performance with the therapy but after the excessive medical care in thyroid examination performance is at status quo. Key events such as a medical strike(2000), Middle-East Respiratory Syndrome (2015) influenced the overall performance of the therapy. Conclusion In order to promote a long-term growth in nuclear medicine examination and therapy, it is inevitable to respond to the changes in current medical environment. Furthermore, it is strongly suggested to put efforts to maintain and develop new examinations and clinical indicators.

• Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging
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• v.43 no.1
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• pp.26-34
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• 2009

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to find out what clinicopathologic or immunohistochemical parameter that may affect FDG uptake of primary tumor in PET/CT scan of the gastric carcinoma patient. Materials and Methods: Eighty-nine patients with stomach cancer who underwent pre-operative FDG PET/CT scans were included. In cases with perceptible FDG uptake in primary tumor, the maximum standardized uptake value (SUVmax) was calculated. The clinicopathologic results such as depth of invasion (T stage), tumor size, lymph node metastasis, tumor differentiation and Lauren's classification and immunohistochemical markers such as Ki-67 index, expression of p53, EGFR, Cathepsin D, c-erb-B2 and COX-2 were reviewed. Results: Nineteen out of 89 gastric carcinomas showed imperceptible FDG uptake on PET/CT images. In cases with perceptible FDG uptake in primary tumor, SUVmax was significantly higher in T2, T3 and T4 tumors than T1 tumors ($5.8{\pm}3.1$ vs. $3.7{\pm}2.1$, p=0.002). SUVmax of large tumors (above or equal to 3 cm) was also significantly higher than SUVmax of small ones (less than 3 cm) ($5.7{\pm}3.2$ vs. $3.7{\pm}2.0$, p=0.002). The intestinal types of gastric carcinomas according to Lauren showed higher FDG uptake compared to the non-intestinal types ($5.4{\pm}2.8$ vs. $3.7{\pm}1.3$, p=0.003). SUVmax between p53 positive group and negative group was significantly different ($6.0{\pm}2.8$ vs. $4.4{\pm}3.0$, p=0.035). No significant difference was found in presence of LN metastasis, tumor differentiation, Ki-67 index, and expression of EGFR, Cathepsin D, c-erb-B2 and COX-2. Conclusion: T stage of gastric carcinoma influenced the detectability of gastric cancer on FDG PET PET/CT scan. When gastric carcinoma was perceptible on PET/CT scan, T stage, size of primary tumor, Lauren's classification and p53 expression were related to degree of FDG uptake in primary tumor.