BOSTON -- Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center cancer patients can now take advantage of a state-of-the-art imaging system that produces detailed diagnostic imagery in half the time it takes with conventional equipment.

The PET/CT hybrid scanner combines the sensitivity of positron emission tomography with the specificity of computerized tomography in a single image by simultaneously displaying both functional and anatomic information in a full-color image. The PET/CT scanner does its work in 45 minutes - half the time of conventional PET imaging - providing faster results for physicians and increased convenience for patients.

"This imaging offers a great advance in our ability to obtain more precise information and localization for a number of cancers, including lung, head and neck, esophageal, colorectal and breast cancers, melanoma, lymphoma and single pulmonary nodules," said Herbert Kressel, M.D, chief of BIDMC's Department of Radiology. "The PET/CT allows more accurate monitoring of a patient's response to therapy than a conventional CT scan and having better information may reduce invasive procedures."