# Total-body PET for screening and ultra-low-dose imaging

Source: https://nuclide.cc/technologies/total-body-pet-screening/  
Nuclide record `total-body-pet-screening` (Technology). Data CC BY-NC 4.0, attribute "Data from Nuclide (nuclide.cc)"; commercial use needs a licence.

## TL;DR

Scanners sensitive enough to image the whole body in seconds at a fraction of the radiation dose, which raises the question of whether healthy people should be scanned at all.

## Summary

Total-body PET systems capture the entire body in one field of view with roughly forty times the sensitivity of conventional scanners, enabling minute-long scans, tracer doses a fraction of the usual, and dynamic whole-body kinetics. That makes asymptomatic screening technically conceivable for the first time, but there is no evidence of mortality benefit, and incidentalomas, cost and radiation argue against it. The near-term value is in dosimetry, paediatrics and pharmacokinetic research.

## Fields

- Kind: Technology
- Status: concept
- Last checked: 2026-09-08
- Tags: frontier
- Principle: A long axial field-of-view detector ring captures far more of the emitted photons, letting sensitivity be traded for dose, time, or both.
- Strengths: Ultra-low-dose or ultra-fast scans; Whole-body kinetic modelling for radioligand dosimetry; Better paediatric and repeat imaging
- Limitations: No screening evidence and likely overdiagnosis; Scanner cost limits access; Tracer supply and reimbursement

## Sources

- ClinicalTrials.gov: total-body PET: https://clinicaltrials.gov/search?term=total-body%20PET

## Connected records

- technologies: [PET (positron emission tomography)](https://nuclide.cc/technologies/pet/), [PET/CT](https://nuclide.cc/technologies/pet-ct/)
- companies: [Siemens Healthineers](https://nuclide.cc/companies/siemens-healthineers/), [United Imaging](https://nuclide.cc/companies/united-imaging/)
- terms: [Dosimetry](https://nuclide.cc/terms/dosimetry/), [Time-of-flight (TOF) PET](https://nuclide.cc/terms/time-of-flight-pet/)
- fronts: [Molecular imaging](https://nuclide.cc/fronts/f-molecular-imaging/)
- ideas: [Using total-body PET's sensitivity to cut diagnostic tracer dose, not just scan time](https://nuclide.cc/ideas/idea-total-body-pet-lower-dose-tracers/)
- roadmaps: [Dosimetry roadmap: MIRD schema → fixed dosing → personalised, image-based dose](https://nuclide.cc/roadmaps/dosimetry-roadmap/)

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