Using radioactive drugs to see inside your body - Pedro Brugarolas

Investigate the science behind how doctors use radioactive drugs and PET scans to detect and diagnose diseases like Alzheimer’s and cancer. -- Is there a way to detect diseases like cancer and Alzheimer’s before they advance too far? Doctors are using injected radioactive drugs that circulate through the body and act as a beacon for PET scanners. These diagnostic tools can detect the spread of diseases before they can be spotted with other types of imaging. So how exactly does this work, and is it safe? Pedro Brugarolas investigates. Lesson by Pedro Brugarolas, directed by Artrake Studio. Sign up for our newsletter: http://bit.ly/TEDEdNewsletter Support us on Patreon: http://bit.ly/TEDEdPatreon Follow us on Facebook: http://bit.ly/TEDEdFacebook Find us on Twitter: http://bit.ly/TEDEdTwitter Peep us on Instagram: http://bit.ly/TEDEdInstagram View full lesson: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/why-do-hospitals-have-particle-accelerators-pedro-brugarolas Thank you so much to our patrons for your support! Without you this video would not be possible! Liana Switzer, Maija Chapman, Pamela Harrison, Mighterbump , Beatriz Inácio, Robert Hargis, Soma Ali, Mark wisdom, Ai Ejima, Irindany Sandoval, William Bravante, Elizabeth Parker, Sai Krishna Koyoda, Therapist Gus, Samuel Barbas, Betsy Feathers, Victoria Soler-Roig, Pavel Maksimov, Barbara Younker, Cyrus Garay, Yvette Mocete, Mike Azarkman, Valeria Sloan Vasquez, Patricia Alves Panagides, William Biersdorf, Michael Aquilina, Kshitij Shah, Mohammad Said, Victoria Veretilo, Rebecca Reineke, Felipe Hoff, Kyanta Yap, Lewis Westbury, Ojas Kapoor, Mirzat Turap, Jaime Arriola, Emilia Alvarado, Javid Gozalov, Paul Beard, Deepak Iyer, Markus Goldhacker, Mihai Sandu, Keven Webb, Maurice Castonguay, Kristiyan Bonev, Maryam Dadkhah, Joshua Wasniewski, Michał Friedrich, Arlene Spiegelman and Doug Henry.