Royal Free research project for whole body scanning using 3D PET receives funding

A physicist at the Royal Free Hospital, London, has been awarded a £236,000 grant to carry out research using a PET scanner that creates a 3D picture of the whole body in one scan, allowing doctors to see how tumours and organs are functioning.

Diagnostic nuclear medicine and PETCT physics lead Dr Beverley Holman received the senior clinical and practice research award from the National Institute of Health Research. It will enable Dr Holman to carry out research two days a week over the next five years, starting in September.

The new Biograph Vision Quadra from Siemens Healthineers, which was installed in March, can deliver a much lower dose of radiation to patients while scanning faster and producing better quality images, opening up new avenues of research using PET scans. The scanner was bought by the Royal Free Hospital charity along with donors through the charity.

One trial already being considered is scanning healthy people at high risk of developing lung cancer, as the low dose of radiation minimises the risk of harm.

The scanner could also help determine whether colon polyps need to be removed. It is currently difficult to tell whether they are cancerous and so the standard approach is to remove them. However, the scanner, which is said to be 11 times more sensitive than the latest standard machines, might be able to show whether the polyps are benign, saving patients unnecessary procedures.

The lower dose also means that pregnant women with cancer can be scanned at low risk to them and their unborn child, helping doctors to make more informed decisions about the best course of action.

Dr Holman said: “Being able to do research using the new scanner was always our aim and there are so many potential applications for the scanner; the sky’s the limit. This is a hugely exciting time for this area of research and I’m delighted we’ve been given this funding.

“This is a chance for lots of people across the trust to get involved. It will also enable people in my team to take part in research with everyone working together to improve patient care.” Another area of interest is in radioactive biomarkers injected into patients that bind to cells inside the body. The plan is to test new tracers that could deliver better images and allow for more accurate diagnosis. University College London’s Radiochemistry Lab and Centre for Advanced Biomedical Imaging have already agreed to collaborate to develop tracers for specific cancers or diseases and the first in-human studies would take place at the Royal Free Hospital using the new PET scanner.

Dr Holman will also be working with the National PET Imaging Platform (NPIP). Launched in 2023, NPIP is a national total body PET platform for drug discovery. As a collaborative partner to NPIP’s national network, the Royal Free Hospital will conduct clinical and research work that can be shared with the network.

It is anticipated that these research projects and many others could quickly lead to changes in current working practices across many departments.

The Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust hosts one of the busiest cancer services in the NHS, receiving almost 50,000 referrals each year.

Picture: Diagnostic nuclear medicine and PETCT physics lead Dr Beverley Holman.

See this report on the front page of the July 2024 issue of RAD Magazine.