Nuclear Medicine is a field where radioactive isotopes are used mainly for diagnosis and for some therapeutic applications. It involves administration of a small amount of radioactivity intravenously, followed by either immediate or delayed imaging, which in some cases needs to be done up to one week after the radioactivity administration. The work is performed by a highly specialized team including nuclear medicine physicians, technologists, trained staff nurse and medical physicist. 
SENIOR STAFF
Dr. Naima Al Balushi, Sr. Consultant & Head
Dr. Amal Al Saadi, Sr. Consultant
Dr. S.K. Chirala, Sr. Specialist
Mr. Hafidh Al Jahdamy, Chief Technologist.
FACILITIES
The Nuclear Medicine service was started in Royal Hospital in 1990 with a single head orbit Gamma camera located in the Radiology department. With that facility, a few studies were done – milk, thyroid, renal, and bone scans. A few cardiac studies were also performed using thallium 201. This camera was replaced with E-cam dual head SPECT gamma camera in 2002. More studies were done including SPECT myocardial scintigraphy and MUGA scans.
The existing nuclear medicine department was commissioned in the national oncology centre in December 2004. There are two dual head E-cam gamma cameras. New investigations were introduced including Gallium 67 for lymphoma and infection, and I131 MIBG for functioning neuroendocrine tumours. In 2006, I-131 therapy was started for patients with hyperthyroidism and for those with differentiated thyroid cancer. Two isolation rooms in the oncology ward were redesigned for these patients.
Being the only department providing this service in the Ministry of Health, investigations are done for patients from all over the country, though mainly from Muscat, Sohar, Nizwa, Ibri, Sur and Salalah. In order to meet with the increasing demand two additional gamma cameras will be added to this department in the near future, a SPECT/CT and a dedicated cardiac gamma camera.
The procedures done now include; myocardial scintigraphy, MUGA, bone, genitourinary, thyroid, parathyroid, gastrointestinal scans and lymphscintigraphy. In addition to tumor localization using Gallium scan mainly for lymphoma, the other specialized procedures include: I131 MIBG for functioning neuroendocrine tumors and I131 for thyroid cancer patients.
Sentinel lymph node localization is done only for breast cancer patients for the time being; patients with other tumors will be included once the SPECT/CT is functioning. Pulmonary ventilation perfusion and gastrointestinal bleeding scans are done as urgent studies during and outside routine working hours for detection of pulmonary embolism and localization of a gastrointestinal bleed respectively. Radioactive iodine (I131) is used for treating patient with thyroid disorders, mainly hyperthyroidism and differentiated thyroid cancer.
Procedures performed in Nuclear Medicine Department 2010:
Departments