BreastPET/MRI Insert

Development and Evaluation of a Breast PET/MRI Insert Prototype for a Clinical Whole-Body PET/MRI Scanner

01.09.2023 bis 31.08.2026

We aim to use the combination of the complementary detection sensitivities of Positron Emission Tomography (PET) and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) to improve the diagnostic accuracy in breast cancer. The current whole-body clinical PET/MRI scanners were designed for a wide range of applications, not solely for breast imaging. This causes limitations in spatial resolution and detection sensitivity for imaging of the breast. Our goal is to overcome these limitations by the development of a breast-specific PET insert for a state-of-the-art clinical whole-body PET/MRI scanner. The concept proposed by our group further utilizes coincidences between the breast PET insert and the whole-body PET/MRI scanner. This enables a high precision for imaging of the axillary lymph nodes and metastasis outside of the breast which are essential for the classification of breast cancer and subsequent treatment guidance.