Cancer Treatment
Sunway Medical Cancer Center houses the most powerful and precise tools for diagnosing and treating cancer. Moving away from the conventional treatment, we offer the most advanced and comprehensive technology that can treat most cancer cases.
Medical Technology and Facilities
Nuclear Medicine is a medical speciality involving the application of radioactive pharmaceutical in the diagnosis and treatment of disease.
Sunway Medical Centre has the first 4D PET-CT and first xSPECT-CT in Malaysia and the most comprehensive Nuclear Medicine Centre that provide both diagnostic and therapeutic care to patient.
In diagnostic nuclear medicine (also known as molecular imaging), single photon emission computed tomography-computed tomography (SPECT-CT) or positron emission tomography-computed tomography (PET-CT) are the two most common hybrid imaging modalities. Nuclear medicine imaging differs from radiology as the emphasis is not only on anatomy but the body function and characteristics of the tumours.
SPECT-CT Information
Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography-Computed Tomography (SPECT-CT)
SPECT-CT combines two imaging technologies – SPECT which shows biological functions in the body, and Computed Tomography (CT), which shows detailed anatomical structures. If a scanner does not have the CT component, it is more commonly known as a Gamma Camera rather than a SPECT scanner. A SPECT-CT scan allows your doctor to see how your organs function and to detect certain diseases. It is useful for a range of medical conditions, such as bone metastases, renal function, cardiac blood flow, gastrointestinal function, immune activity, thyroid function, tumours and more.
New xSPECT technologies allow precise localization of disease for more confident lesion assessment and automated lesion quantification.
PET-CT Information
Positron Emission tomography-Computed Tomography (PET-CT)
PET/CT (Positron Emission Tomography/Computed Tomography) is a powerful imaging technique that combines both CT scan and PET scan using radioactive sugar (FDG – 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose) as the tracer.
It provides comprehensive information on the abnormal activity and function of cells (obtained by PET) as well as the precise location of these abnormalities in the body (obtained by CT).
This leads to more accurate assessment of your current medical condition especially cancer, brain disorder, heart disease and infective/ inflammatory disease.
New 4D PET-CT which respiratory gating technologies allow more accurate assessment of lung and liver lesions as well as better radiotherapy planning assessment.
Radionuclide therapy is a systemic targeted treatment that uses a molecule labeled with a radioisotope to deliver a high level of radiation to treat some cancers.
| Radioactive iodine for thyrotoxicosis | Hyperthyroidism is a medical condition of overactive thyroid gland, which leads to excessive thyroxine hormone secretion. When radioactive iodine (I-131) is given, it will be absorbed and concentrated in the thyroid gland. it then emits radiation that specifically kills the thyroid cells. |
| Radioactive iodine for thyroid cancer | Radioactive iodine (I-131) has been used to treat thyroid cancer. This is done to treat some patients after thyroidectomy to destroy any remaining cancer cells and prevent the thyroid cancer returning. It is also used to treat patients with metastatic thyroid cancer. |
| Paptide receptor radionuclide therapy | Radionuclide therapy is used for treating neuroendocrine tumours. A molecule that targets a specific receptor on the cell surface called somatostatin is labelled with a radioactive particle to target these tumours. This is called peptide receptor radionuclide therapy (PRRT). The radioactive particle is either Lutetium-177 or Yttrium-90. |
| Lutetium-177 PSMA therapy | The current most promising therapy used to treat advanced prostate cancer especially castration-resistant. |
SPECT-CT
Good preparation before the examination is important to ensure good quality images. You are advice to follow the instructions closely as below:
*** if you are on multiple medication or have recently received other imaging (such as barium study or CT scan), please inform our staff for the arrangement of the date of the scan.
PET-CT
- If you are diabetic, take low carbohydrate diet a day before the appointment date. Avoid sweet food and drink. For dinner, remember to take diabetic drug / insulin injection with the food.
- Fasting 6 hours before appointment time (except plain water).
- Avoid strenuous exercise 2 days before the examination.
- If you are on steroid (prednisolone / hydrocort / dexamethasone), please stop 1 day before the appointment day.
- Take other medication as usual EXCEPT metformin.
Radionuclide Therapy
You will be seeing a nuclear medicine physician before the treatment to assess your medical condition; to discuss the treatment options and answer your queries.
*** Please contact our staff if you have any queries.
SPECT-CT / PET-CT scan
All nuclear medicine scans involve administering small amount radioactive compounds. Therefore, the radiation dose you receive is quite low, with most being about the same as the amount of radiation you receive from the environment over the course of a year.
While the radiation dose for nuclear medicine scan is small, you are not necessary to isolate yourself from others EXCEPT pregnant lady or/and children below 12 years old. Anyway, by the end of the day, all the radiation will be out of your body.
It is IMPORTANT to notify your scan technologist before every examinations if you are pregnant, breast feeding or other medical conditions such as haemodialysis.
Radionuclide Therapy
Side effects are dependent on the type of the therapy. Targeted radionuclide therapy allows higher level of radiation to be delivered to the target tumours as compared with normal tissues. In most cases, the side effects are therefore minimal or mild.
Potential of adverse effects, however, are possible and will be discussed with you prior to therapy.
