Skip to Content

Nuclear Medicine

Cone Health Nuclear Medicine strives to be at the forefront of technology and is consistently one of the first in the state to offer new specialty diagnostic exams and therapies.

Within nuclear medicine, we offer three different services: diagnostic imaging, specialty imaging and therapeutics.

Diagnostic Imaging

Cone Health offers many general diagnostic exams, including: 

  • Bone scans
  • Liver, gallbladder and bile ducts scans (hepatobiliary scans)
  • Gastric emptying scans (measuring the time it takes for food to leave your stomach)
  • Thyroid scans
  • Heart structure and function scans (cardiac SPECT scans)
  • Brain scans (DaTscans)

For a diagnostic exam, a gamma camera is used to capture images. Some diagnostic exams utilize a Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography (SPECT) scanner that rotates around the patient to create 3D images. 

Depending on the scan, a diagnostic imaging session can be as short as five minutes or as long as five hours. The scan itself, as well as pre-scan prep, will vary based on the type of scan you are receiving. Your provider will let you know what to expect via MyChart before your scan.

Cone Health’s diagnostic imaging is offered at all locations with two exceptions: 

  • The DaTscan (nuclear medicine brain scan) is only available at Moses Cone Hospital.
  • The Cardiac SPECT scan is not available at Wesley Long.

Specialty PET/CT Imaging

Specialty Imaging scans use a PET/CT scanner, and the patient is given a radiopharmaceutical tracer that the scan picks up. The combination of the PET scan and CT scan allows the two tests to be overlayed, giving providers more accurate anatomical information when they review the images.

Commonly, specialty PET/CT imaging is given to cancer patients, including for: 

  • Oncology patients (FDG scan – the most common PET/CT scan for oncology patients)
    • Skull base to thigh scan
    • Whole body scan
  • Prostate cancer (Axumin scan)
  • Neuroendocrine cancer (Dotatate scans)
  • Prostate cancer (PSMA scans)
  • ER positive breast cancer (F18-cERianna [Fluoroestradiol])

Other non-oncology related specialty PET/CT imaging scans include:  

  • Brain scans (both amyloid and metabolic)
  • Cardiac PET/CT

If you have been scheduled for a specialty scan, be aware you will be given a radiopharmaceutical injection prior to the scan.

Unless told otherwise by your provider, you should be able to wear your normal clothes to your scan. If possible, please wear clothing without metal and avoid accessories on the day of your scan (opt for elastic waist pants, no jewelry, etc.).

Locations:

  • General oncology PET/CT scans are available at Wesley Long Hospital, Annie Penn Hospital and Alamance Regional Medical Center.
  • Our cardiac PET/CT scan is only available at Wesley Long Hospital.

Therapeutics

Cone Health offers nuclear medicine therapies for cancer patients. Often, these therapies will be given in conjunction with a specialty imaging scan.

We currently offer therapeutics for the following cancers: 

  • Neuroendocrine cancer (Lutetium- 177 Lutathera Therapy)
  • Advanced metastatic prostate cancer (Lutetium- 177 Pluvicto Therapy)
  • Bone metastasis from prostate cancer (Radium-223 Xofigo Therapy)
  • Treatment of liver tumors (Yttrium-90 Therapy)
  • Thyroid cancer and hyperthyroid disorders (Iodine 131 Therapy)

Most of the therapeutics are administered via IV injection, but your treatment may vary based on your therapy. Your provider will let you know what to expect as far as how your treatment is given, how frequently you will receive it and how long each appointment will take.

Locations: 

  • The prostate cancer therapy (Xofigo) is available at Alamance Regional Medical Center, but otherwise all therapeutics (including for prostate cancer) are given at Wesley Long Hospital.
  • All locations also offer the therapy for thyroid cancer and hyperthyroid disorders (Iodine 131 Therapy).

Contact Information

Molecular Imaging Departments:

  • Alamance Regional: (336) 538-7582
  • Annie Penn: (336) 951-4829
  • Moses Cone: (336) 832-7959
  • Wesley Long: (336) 832-1871

Cone Health Centralized Scheduling: (336) 663-4290