A new PET-CT scanner has been launched at Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital, to enhance access to advanced cancer diagnostics in the East of England.
The hospital has advanced its on-site PET-CT service, thanks to a partnership with Alliance Medical. This saw a mobile scanner upgraded to a spanning specialty center in November 2019, and then in April a new digital scanner was installed. As a result, Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital has access to improved image quality and increased capacity.
On 17 October, the new scanner and PET-CT Center at the hospital was officially opened by Tom Spink, chairman of the University Hospitals of Norfolk and Norwich NHS Foundation Trust. The technology is available to patients with a clinical referral, and is available by appointment six days a week.
The £5 million investment from Alliance Medical has seen the number of daily appointments available increase from 20 to 24, with plans to further expand capacity next year. In 2024, Norwich and Norfolk University Hospital will see the number of bays doubled from three bays to six, increasing capacity to 32 patients per day.
Sasha Burns, Chief Operating Officer at Alliance Medical, said: “The launch of this new scanner illustrates the continued investment we are making in PET-CT. As the National PET-CT contract holder for NHS England, we are dedicated to improve diagnostic pathways leading to better access, treatment options and overall survival rates. This new PET-CT service will allow us to reach even more patients, increasing scanning capacity in the area and reducing waiting times with state-of-the-art digital scanning technology.”
Ian Stevenson, director of the center, added: “Digital is an incredibly important stage for us because we know that if we diagnose people with suspected cancer more quickly, ultimately it can improve the results. Not only does this new scanner give us an ability greater than scanning more patients every day, but advanced technology helps us detect even the smallest lesions and thus provide early diagnoses.
At the end of summer, Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital joined Guy’s and St Thomas’, the Royal Berkshire and Basingstoke and North Hampshire NHS Trust. in offering a less invasive robotic treatment for men with enlarged prostates.
