Head
PD Dr. Luca Giovanella
Nuclear medicine and PET-CT Centre
Oncology Institute of Southern Switzerland
Ospedale Regionale Bellinzona e Valli
6500 Bellinzona
Ph. +41 (0)91 811 86 72/64 46
Fax +41 (0)91 811 82 50/64 44
e-mail: luca.giovanella@eoc.ch

Nuclear medicine makes use of substances with low emission of radioactivity (radioisotopes and radiopharmaceuticals) and hi-tech instruments (SPET gamma-cameras, PET tomographs) to examine the metabolic, functional, biochemical processes of different organs and systems and to define biological cellular assets (proliferation, differentiation, the expression of receptors). Besides, special radiopharmaceuticals are used for the treatment of thyroid benign diseases (hyperthyroidism and goitre), thyroid carcinomas, osseous metastases, neuroendocrine tumours and of certain types of lymphoma.

Clinical activities

Nuclear medicine
There are in use three gamma-cameras / SPET tomographs of which 1 hybrid tomograph SPET-CT and 2 highly advanced SPET tomographs, used for scintigraphic and tomoscintigraphic research.

• Myocardial scintigraphy (SPET)
• Osseous scintigraphy (SPET)
• Thyroid and parathyroid scintigraphy
• Renal scintigraphy
• Receptor scintigraphy (Octreoscan)

Radio metabolic Therapy
There are 3 application rooms for inpatients, for the treatment with high activities of iodine-131 in the hospital centre of Bellinzona.
The following therapies are carried out on an outpatient basis or in the day-hospital:

• radio metabolic therapies with low activities of iodine-131 (Bellinzona and Lugano)
• therapies with anti-CD20 antibodies, labelled with yttrium-90 (Zevalin) for the treatment of lymphoma (Bellinzona)
• therapies with radiolabelled bisphosphonate for the treatment of osseous metastases of solid tumour (Bellinzona)
• Radiosynoviorthesis for the treatment of arthritis and articular effusions (Bellinzona)

Outpatient Clinic for Thyroid diseases
There are two outpatient clinics, (Bellinzona and Lugano), for diagnosis and treatment of thyroid benign diseases and thyroid tumours. The following services are provided:

• specialist medical examination and second opinion consultation
• thyroid and cervical lymph nodes echography
• ultrasound (US) guided fine needle aspiration of thyroid nodules and cervical masses
• thyroid scintigraphy (99m Tx-pertechnetate, iodine-123, 99m Tx-sestaMIBI)
• radiometabolic therapies with iodine-131

PET-CT Centre
A PET-CT tomograph (Siemens Biograph 6) equipped with LSO detectors is operating at Regional Hospital of Bellinzona. The following procedures are performed:

• PET-CT whole body with 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG)
• PET-CT whole body with 18F-fluorocholine (FCH)
• PET-CT whole body with 18F-fluorodopa (DOPA)
• Brain PET-CT with 18F-fluoroethilthyrosine (FET)

Didactic activities
PD Dr. Luca Giovanella
Assistant Professor at University of Zurich, Medical School, Institute of Nuclear Medicine
Visiting Professor at University of Insubria, Department of Radiology
Director, "Scuola Permanente in Medicina Nucleare", Association of Clinical Endocrinologist (AME)

Research activities
Circulating markers of endocrine neoplasm (collaboration EOLAB, Italian Society of laboratory Medicine; University Hospital "Fondazione Macchi"-Varese, University of Zurich, IRCCS ("Istituto Regina Elena"-Rome)
Tumour markers and PET/CT in diagnosis and response assessment of solid tumours
99mTc-sestaMIBI thyroid nodule typing (collaboration with Cantonal Institute of Pathology, University Hospital "Fondazione Macchi"-Varese, IRCCS "Istituto Regina Elena"-Rome)
PET/CT in diagnosis and response assessment of malignant lymphomas (collaboration SAKK, IOSI, Cantonal Institute of Pathology)
Radio immunotherapy with Zevalin in B-cell lymphomas (collaboration SAKK, IOSI)
Evaluation of the effects of transplantation of myocardial stem cells by using MIBI-SPET and ACSE-SPET (collaboration Cardiocentro Ticino)
Multimodal imaging in nuclear cardiology SPET (collaboration Cardiocentro Ticino, CHUV Lausanne)