NTP Donates PET-CT Scanner to Tygerberg Hospital | Western Cape Government

News

News

NTP Donates PET-CT Scanner to Tygerberg Hospital

24 November 2011

Today, Western Cape Government Health, NTP Radioisotopes (Pty) Ltd and its parent company Necsa will be celebrating the intermediate phase of installing a R32-million Positron Emission Tomography - Computed Tomography (PET-CT) scanner at Tygerberg Hospital.

Of the nine functioning PET-CT scanners in the country, most of them are concentrated in the Gauteng province, with only one located in the Western Cape, said Mapula Letsoalo, NTP's Executive Director. "The scanner owned by the Cape PET-CT Centre is currently shared between one private clinic and three state hospitals," explained Letsoalo. "This scenario has caused strain as Tygerberg, Groote Schuur and Red Cross hospitals are only allocated two afternoon sessions per week. The need for an additional PET-CT scanner in the province was imminent as the use of F-18 FDG has grown by 109% in 2009/2010 compared to 2008/2009 for Tygerberg Hospital alone!"

Western Cape Minister of Health, Theuns Botha, said: "Western Cape provincial government is thankful for the PET-CT scanner, which will bring enormous relief to the staff and capacity at Tygerberg Hospital. We have more than 2 000 new oncology patients at Tygerberg each year who depend on our services, as well as many thousands more who come for follow-up. Patients from Groote Schuur and Red Cross Children's Hospital will also be scanned at the facility. Our health budget limits us to invest in the advanced technology offered by the scanner, and with this generous donation the hospital is now able to offer this service to more than ten patients per day."

The PET-CT system met all of the main requirements as a dedicated oncology machine with time of flight technology enabling low FDG doses, and its suitability for radiotherapy planning including its large bore, and full integration with the existing Picture Archiving Computer System (PACS) and padiotherapy planning systems at the academic hospitals in the Western Cape. This means more accurate detection, better resolution, detection of smaller lesions and faster scanning.

Positron Emission Tomography (PET) is a modern medical functional imaging technique used in the management of patients with cancer; it is also used in infections and inflammation, cardiology and neurology. The PET technique provides accurate diagnosis, staging and re-staging in certain cancers, and allows rapid evaluation of the efficacy of therapy. PET has led to changes in treatment options and prevention of unnecessary surgical procedures in a significant number of patients.

NTP is in the business of actively enhancing lives! Millions of patients throughout the world benefit from nuclear medicine scans and other procedures performed using products supplied by the organisation. Early detection of most diseases assisted by using nuclear medicine scans greatly enhances the possibility of early and accurate diagnosis. This allows for prompt and proper treatment and, therefore, a better chance of a saved life.

Western Cape Government Health's contribution to this PET-CT project is estimated at R14.75 million (R11 million - infrastructure and R3.75 million - equipment accessories). The new PET-CT scanner will be fully functional by mid-2012.

Media Enquiries: 

Laticia Pienaar
Tel: 021 938 5454
Cell: 073 464 2034

Chantal Janneker
Tel: 012 305 5750
Cell: 083 488 3850

Elliot Mulane
Tel: 012 305 5006
Cell: 078 803 5569