About our Project:

Prostate cancer detection and biopsy are required to provide a definitive diagnosis for early and recurrent prostate cancer. While multiple imaging modalities are now available for detecting and guiding the biopsy needle to a suspicious target, they are still not optimal as some result in a high rate of false negative findings, are costly and inconsistent with physician experience. The development of molecular imaging techniques involving an imaging tracer used with Positron Emission Tomography (PET) systems are providing more sensitive and specific methods for detecting many cancers.

Objective:

This project aims to provide a method to guide prostate biopsy accurately and efficiently by developing: i) a prostate biopsy-guidance system to be integrated into the prostate-specific PET system and ii) a superior PET imaging tracer. 

Project Impact:

These project developments have the potential to provide a more sensitive and specific method to detect prostate cancer, and a more accurate method to sample the tumour for histological analysis. Together this work would allow for improved decisions on which therapy a patient with prostate cancer should receive.

Inquiries:

Carol Richardson
Program Manager, Imaging Program
carol.oicr.imaging@gmail.com

Project team 

Dr. Aaron Fenster
Robarts Research Institute, Western University

Dr. Saman Sadeghi
McMaster University

Dr. John Valliant
McMaster University