On February 12, 2012, the first hybrid PET/MRI in Canada, and fifth in the world, was installed in London, Ontario at St. Joseph's Hospital. In 2016, hybrid PET/MRI started up in Toronto (UHN) and Ottawa (Royal) with new sites committed in Toronto (Sunnybrook), Edmonton, Winnipeg and Vancouver.
This one day symposium will summarize the London experience over the last five years. This will include the technological challenges that have been met (e.g. the need for PET compatible RF coils, MRI directed attenuation correction in brain imaging and the advantage of co-siting a medical cyclotron and radio-chemistry facility) and those that remain (e.g. reimbursement for routine patient use, hybrid reconstruction, hybrid kinetic modeling and respiratory and cardiac corrections for true registration). Experience with applications in cardiology, epilepsy, prostate cancer and rectal cancer will be presented. Presenters from Ottawa and Toronto will also look to the future of hybrid PET/MRI in cardiology, neurodegeneration and psychiatry.
Researchers and students interested in hybrid PET/MRI and its potential role in clinical diagnosis will benefit from this symposium. This includes those interested in technology development and those interested in using PET/MRI to discover the mechanisms of disease and the assessment of therapies. In one full day, attendees will gain knowledge concerning the strengths and challenges of hybrid PET/MRI technology and its growing role in oncology, neurology and cardiology. With a growing number of sites in Canada, there will be an excellent opportunity to form collaborations and the opportunity to establish a Canadian network.
Date and Time: Tuesday, March 14, 2017, 8:15 a.m. to 5:45 p.m.
Location: St. Joseph's Hospital, Shuttleworth Auditorium (D0-104)
Schedule: View the event schedule.
Registration: Online registration is now closed. Please contact Shelagh Ross at @email by Friday, March 10 to register.
