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Review
. 2022 Apr 30;23(9):5023.
doi: 10.3390/ijms23095023.

Radiopharmaceuticals for PET and SPECT Imaging: A Literature Review over the Last Decade

George Crișan  1   2 , Nastasia Sanda Moldovean-Cioroianu  1 , Diana-Gabriela Timaru  1 , Gabriel Andrieș  2 , Călin Căinap  3 , Vasile Chiș  1   4
Affiliations
Review

Radiopharmaceuticals for PET and SPECT Imaging: A Literature Review over the Last Decade

George Crișan et al. Int J Mol Sci. .

Abstract

Positron emission tomography (PET) uses radioactive tracers and enables the functional imaging of several metabolic processes, blood flow measurements, regional chemical composition, and/or chemical absorption. Depending on the targeted processes within the living organism, different tracers are used for various medical conditions, such as cancer, particular brain pathologies, cardiac events, and bone lesions, where the most commonly used tracers are radiolabeled with 18F (e.g., [18F]-FDG and NA [18F]). Oxygen-15 isotope is mostly involved in blood flow measurements, whereas a wide array of 11C-based compounds have also been developed for neuronal disorders according to the affected neuroreceptors, prostate cancer, and lung carcinomas. In contrast, the single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) technique uses gamma-emitting radioisotopes and can be used to diagnose strokes, seizures, bone illnesses, and infections by gauging the blood flow and radio distribution within tissues and organs. The radioisotopes typically used in SPECT imaging are iodine-123, technetium-99m, xenon-133, thallium-201, and indium-111. This systematic review article aims to clarify and disseminate the available scientific literature focused on PET/SPECT radiotracers and to provide an overview of the conducted research within the past decade, with an additional focus on the novel radiopharmaceuticals developed for medical imaging.

Keywords: PET; SPECT; molecular imaging; radiopharmaceuticals; review; tracers.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Number of scientific papers related to PET (left axis) and SPECT (right axis) radiopharmaceuticals over the past 10 years.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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