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PSMA PET/CT Guide
Prostate-Specific Membrane Antigen F-18 (Gleason score 4+3; PSA 11.39)
Exam Overview:
An F-18 PSMA PET/CT was performed in a male patient with a newly diagnosed prostate carcinoma. Imaging was acquired on a PET/CT system. PSMA-avid uptake localizes to the right prostate, consistent with the known primary malignancy. No PSMA-avid regional nodal or distant metastatic disease is identified within the imaged field.
Understanding the PSMA Radiopharmaceutical
Prostate-Specific Membrane Antigen (PSMA) is a protein highly expressed on prostate cancer cells. PSMA PET/CT imaging uses a radiolabeled tracer that binds to PSMA, enabling detection of cancerous cells with exceptional sensitivity and specificity. PSMA is typically used for intermediate or high risk patients.
Why NCPIC Uses F-18 PSMA Over Ga-68 PSMA
While some centers offer Ga-68 PSMA, NCPIC uses F-18 DCFPyL (Pylarify®) as its preferred PSMA radiotracer. The advantages of this radiopharmaceutical, from our clinical opinion, allows a longer half-life (110 minutes), which allows scheduling flexibility while supporting consistent, high-quality imaging. In addition, F-18's lower positron energy provides higher spatial resolution and improved tumor-to-background contrast, enabling more accurate disease detection.
Technology used for PSMA imaging
NCPIC exclusively uses advanced digital PET/CT technology, delivering higher sensitivity, improved spatial resolution, and faster acquisition times compared with analog systems. Our PET/CT systems are modern and feature a 80- or 160-slice CT with "grain-of-rice" imaging PET capabilities down to 2.9 mm in size.
Locations
Sacramento
Rocklin