Warm Blanket Lessens Chances of False-Positives in Cancer Scans

Cancer Detection Test

Placing a warm blanket on patients undergoing PET/CT scans to detect cancer makes the test more accurate, new Saint Louis University research finds.

In up to 9 percent of patients, doctors have difficulty interpreting scans because of the presence of brown adipose tissue, also known as brown fat, which may lead to a cancer misdiagnosis.

"This is a significant finding," says Medhat Osman, M.D., Ph.D., assistant professor of nuclear medicine and PET director at Saint Louis University School of Medicine. "It is a solution that not only is effective but low-cost and extremely easy for any PET facility to implement."

Osman says brown fat serves an important physiological role