Tuesday, Jul. 14, 2009

Medical Center to buy new cancer equipment, spend $3 million

The Medical Center has plans to purchase a PET/CT scanner by November, hospital officials announced today.

The Columbus hospital was approved by the state to obtain the equipment, which should help physicians in detecting cancer and other serious illnesses. It will cost more than $3 million for the equipment, space renovation, architectural and engineering fees.

“The PET/CT scanner is our single best imaging tool for finding cancer cells in a patient’s body,” Glen Vahjen, medical center director of imaging services for The Medical Center, said in a statement. “This dual-function machine also improves our ability to diagnose coronary artery disease and certain brain disorders, including Alzheimer’s disease.”

The scanner will be able to help identify the origin of cancer malignancy and the sites to which it has spread. It can also help determine whether a treatment is working.

Currently, the Medical Center uses a mobile scanner twice a week for its patients. With the permanent scanner, officials said The Medical Center’s volume for PET/CT scans should soon exceed 850 scans per year.

Physicians are expected to begin using the equipment with patients by December.

To acquire this equipment, officials had to file a Certificate of Need with the Georgia Department of Community Health’s Division of Health Planning and receive approval.