The cost may vary depending on the equipment quality, body part to be scanned, medical facility, etc. However, the average cost of a CT scan in Kolkata ranges from INR 1100 to INR 16000.

A whole-body PET CT scan helps your doctor determine the functioning of the organs including abnormalities in metabolic activities, blood flow, etc. PET CT scans organs and all tissues which enables your doctor to identify potential diseases, including cancer.

A PET CT scan is recommended to evaluate the internal organs and tissues to detect potential diseases, including cancer. It helps to identify abnormal growths in the body. It is the most safest and accurate imaging test for cancer diagnosis than all other imaging scans

It is an effective scan to diagnose cancer compared to other imaging scans. PET scans can detect any abnormalities in the cells or tissues at the early stages. PET CT combined scan is proven to be more accurate in diagnosing cancer than separate scanning with PET and CT scans.

Normally, a PET CT scan is not painful. But you have to be stable until the scan completes which will take around 30 to 60 minutes. This may cause you a little discomfort. Before the PET CT scan, you will be given a radiotracer intravenously, orally, or nasally. If it is given intravenously, then it may cause pain while injecting.

PET CT cannot diagnose some cancers accurately. It needs to be interpreted carefully. However, it detects cancers of the breast, brain, cervical, colorectal, head and neck, oesophagus, lung, and lymphatic system. pancreas, prostate, skin, and thyroid.

Certain types of stomach cancers cannot be accurately detected by PET scans. Cancer cells usually produce glucose transporters excessively that cause radioactive contrast material, FDG, to accumulate on such cells. However, all the lesions that get accumulated by FDG are not cancerous. There are rare chances of getting false positives.

All imaging scans involve the use of radiation that could damage tissue and may cause cancer at very later times. But the amount of radiation that a PET scan uses is very less and is considered safe.

PET scans usually detect large and more aggressive tumours accurately. However, it can also detect less aggressive cancers. It can locate tumours that are larger and even smaller than 8 mm (about a nail size).

Both procedures have their advantages in testing for cancer. However, a PET scan can detect certain types of cancers more accurately and a biopsy determines the grade of cancer. Both PET scans and biopsies are important to get effective treatment for cancer.

Compared to other imaging scans such as CT or MRI, PET scans can potentially detect abnormalities in the cells of tissues and organs. A combination test of PET and CT can give more accurate results when compared to both scans done separately.

It may take 1 to 2 weeks to get the PET scan results. Ask your doctor how much time you have to wait to know the results of your PET scan

You can leave the hospital on the same day and resume your regular activities unless you are told otherwise. A radiologist or a radiographer can interpret your scanning results and send you the reports later.

You will be given contract material and asked to rest without walking and talking. Later you will lie on a table that slides into the scanner. You can stay still until the scanning completes. The overall procedure of a PET scan may take around 30 minutes.

It varies from person to person depending on age and medical conditions. Ask a specialized radiation oncologist to know how many PET scans you can have in your lifetime.

A PET-CT scan can typically be performed in 30 minutes and is a painless procedure.