Color Atlas of Human Anatomy, Volume 3

Abstract

This section will be limited to a review of radiopharmaceuticals used in nuclear medicine for visualizing the pancreas and prostate. Other organs of the endocrine system will be covered elsewhere in this volume. Unfortunately, the ability of nuclear medicine to develop radiopharmaceuticals that can be used routinely to visualize the pancreas and prostate has, at best, met with limited success. It would appear that the ability of nuclear medicine to demonstrate normal physiology in the body serves as a disadvantage when trying to develop radiopharmaceuticals that will localize in the pancreas or prostate, as no compound that is unique to these organs has, as yet, been found. Interference from activity in other organs or lack of concentration are the problems routinely encountered. In spite of our extensive knowledge of the biochemistry of these organs and ability to synthesize and label very specific molecules for localization, each review on the subject is compelled to conclude that a totally satisfactory radiopharmaceutical has not been found.1-3