Eur. Phys. J. Plus (2017) 132: 396
https://doi.org/10.1140/epjp/i2017-11662-x

Regular Article

A novel TOF-PET MRI detector for diagnosis and follow up of the prostate cancer

¹ INFN, Sezione di Roma, Piazzale Aldo Moro 1, Rome, Italy
² ISS, National Center of Innovative Technologies for the Public Health, Viale Regina Elena 299, 00161, Rome, Italy
³ ISS, Cell Biology and Neurosciences Department-Rome, Viale Regina Elena 299, 00161, Rome, Italy
⁴ Div. Nuclear Medicine/Dept. Radiology, University of Michigan, 48109-5610, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
⁵ INFN, LNS, Vis S. Sofia 62, 95125, Catania, Italy
⁶ University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia, USA
⁷ ENEA- Centro ricerche di Brindisi, S.S. 7 Appia km 706,00, 72100, Brindisi, Italy
⁸ INFN, Sezione di Genova, Via Dodecaneso 33, 16146, Genova, Italy
⁹ FH Aachen University of Applied Sciences, Heinrich-Mußmann-Strasse 1, 52428, Jülich, Germany

^* e-mail: franco.garibaldi@iss.infn.it

Received: 27 July 2017
Accepted: 22 August 2017
Published online: 22 September 2017

Abstract

Prostate cancer is the most common disease in men and the second leading cause of death from cancer. Generic large imaging instruments used in cancer diagnosis have sensitivity, spatial resolution, and contrast which are inadequate for the task of imaging details of a small organ such as the prostate. In addition, multimodality imaging can play a significant role in merging anatomical and functional details coming from simultaneous PET and MRI. Indeed, multiparametric PET/MRI was demonstrated to improve diagnosis, but it suffers from too many false positives. In order to address the above limits of the current techniques, we have proposed, built and tested, thanks to the TOPEM project funded by Italian National Institute of Nuclear Phisics, a prototype of an endorectal PET-TOF/MRI probe. In the applied magnification PET geometry, performance is dominated by a high-resolution detector placed closer to the source. The expected spatial resolution in the selected geometry is about 1.5mm FWHM and efficiency of a factor 2 with respect to what was obtained with the conventional PET scanner. In our experimental studies, we have obtained a timing resolution of ∼ 320 ps FWHM and at the same time a Depth of Interaction (DOI) resolution of under 1mm. Tests also showed that mutual adverse PET-MR effects are minimal. In addition, the matching endorectal RF coil was designed, built and tested. In the next planned studies, we expect that benefiting from the further progress in scintillator crystal surface treatment, in SiPM technology and associated electronics would allow us to significantly improve TOF resolution.