N.S. Health hopes 3D imaging scanners help reduce waitlists

CBC

3 June 2024 at 1:56 pm·2-min read

This new nuclear medicine scanner will soon be in operation at the QEII Health Sciences Centre in Halifax. (Paul Palmeter/CBC - image credit)

A new high-tech 3D imaging scanner will soon be used for nuclear medicine care in a Halifax hospital complex and Nova Scotia Health hopes it will reduce wait times and waitlists.

The QEII Health Sciences Centre is the first hospital in Canada to acquire a StarGuide scanner, which will replace outdated technology and be used to diagnose and treat some diseases, the health authority said in a release.

The scanner has better image quality and resolution that can help to capture additional information in one scan, the release said. For instance, it can help identify the size, shape and position of internal lesions.

"We've had nuclear medicine scanners for a long time but this one is really a quantum leap forward," said Dr. Steven Burrell, the section head of nuclear medicine at the hospital. "This scanner is much more accurate and will give us better images."

He said the scans will give doctors even more information on which to base a diagnosis and formulate a patient's treatment plan.

Since the scanner also takes less time, the hope is it will reduce the need for patients to return multiple times over days or weeks for more scans or tests.

The new scanners will deliver higher quality scans which will give doctors more quality information as they diagnose a patient.

The new scanners will deliver higher-quality scans, which will give doctors more information as they diagnose a patient. (Paul Palmeter/CBC)

While one machine is already set up and ready to go into service at the Halifax Infirmary site, another one is being purchased for the Victoria General site for early 2025.

Approximately 4,000 patients undergo nuclear medicine scans at the Halifax hospital annually. That number is expected to rise significantly when both of the new machines are up and running.

The cost of the two machines is $6 million with the Nova Scotia government kicking in half and the QEII Foundation funding the rest.

"This is a very exciting day for us and I love that our donor community steps up to bring best in class technology to help with imaging," said Susan Mullin, president and CEO of the hospital foundation.

"Particularly for cancer care and heart disease, we know this technology will make a huge difference for both patients and doctors."

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