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Preface

Ralston Paterson Professor of Radiation Oncology, Academic Department of Radiation Oncology, Christie Hospital NHS Trust, Manchester, UK
Director, The University of Manchester Wolfson Molecular Imaging Centre, Manchester, UK

Positron emission tomography (PET) is a non-invasive, quantitative imaging technique that can visualise biochemical, physiological and biological processes in vivo. It is the most specific and sensitive molecular imaging technique in man. In recent years, PET has emerged as a valuable tool for tumour diagnosis, disease staging and treatment monitoring. In particular, PET has great potential as an important component of the radiotherapy treatment process. Although CT is the current gold standard for disease staging, PET has the potential to refine and improve this, and to provide powerful biological information. PET also provides a unique opportunity to assess response to anticancer therapy and to evaluate the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of novel anticancer agents. An increased understanding of key tumour biological parameters such as metabolism, hypoxia, proliferation and blood flow will be provided as PET imaging methods are exploited to study cellular and molecular processes in vivo. To provide an update on the current status of PET in radiotherapy and oncology, international experts in the field came together on the 27 January 2005 at the British Institute of Radiology for a 1-day meeting entitled "The role of PET scanning within radiotherapy". This successful meeting, held in collaboration with the National Translational Cancer Research Network (NTRAC), aimed to raise awareness of the potential of PET scanning in the wider community and to highlight the research areas necessary to develop PET as a useful clinical entity within the National Health Service. This special issue is comprised of summary papers based on keynote talks at the meeting, providing an up-to-date overview of developments in the field and ideas for the future promise of PET in radiotherapy.

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