Efforts are currently underway to establish a state-of-the-art Positron Emission Tomography (PET-CT) laboratory for cancer diagnosis at the Institute of Nuclear Medicine and Allied Sciences (INMAS), located adjacent to Chattogram Medical College (CMC) Hospital.

The authorities at INMAS Chattogram are hopeful of launching the laboratory within the next two and a half months.

According to sources, work is underway to equip the bunker constructed beneath the building for the installation of a cyclotron machine to produce radioisotopes under the auspices of the Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission.

To facilitate this, the recruitment process for personnel is currently in its final stages. At present, the cost of this cancer diagnostic test ranges from Tk 50,000 to Tk 60,000 at private facilities, all of which are located in Dhaka. However, with the introduction of this service in Chattogram, the test could be offered at a government-set rate of Tk 25,000 to Tk 30,000.

Moreover, several private hospitals will be able to conduct the test by acquiring PET-CT machines. This development is expected to significantly enhance Chattogram’s capacity for cancer diagnosis and treatment.

Stakeholders noted that, due to the absence of a PET-CT laboratory in both the public and private sectors in Chattogram, patients are currently compelled to travel to Dhaka to undergo this advanced diagnostic test for cancer.

Currently, PET-CT is reportedly undergoing trials at the National Institute of Nuclear Medicine and Allied Sciences (NINMAS) on the Bangladesh Medical University (BMU) campus in Dhaka, as well as at INMAS on the Dhaka Medical College Hospital campus, the Bangladesh Atomic Energy Research Establishment in Savar near the capital, and three private hospitals in Dhaka.