FMTVDM Imaging for Breast Cancer with
Breast Enhanced Scintigraphy Test (B.E.S.T.) Imaging
The quantitative measurement of tissue changes from healthy through the InflammoThrombotic Immunologic Response (ITIR) spectrum into cancer - an ITIR Disease (ITIRD) - can be measured by FMTVDM.
This includes any cancer, not just Breast Cancer. It can be measured using any type of Nuclear Camera, depending upon what you are looking for and what Isotope you are using.
The first step for these nuclear measurements looking for tissue change (pre-cancer, cancer, et cetera) includes
1) Qualitative Calibration of the Nuclear Camera, and
2) Quantitative Calibration as discussed previously
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https://www.fmtvdm.com/three-fundamental-questions; https://www.flemingmethod.com/copy-of-fleming-method; https://www.flemingmethod.com/heart-disease;
https://www.flemingmethod.com/cancer
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Following calibration of the specific camera being used for the patient - calibration which is dependent upon what health problem is being looked for, which camera is being used, which isotope is being used, which enhancing agent is being used, and which timing sequence is being used - the patient can then undergo FMTVDM imaging.
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The final FMTVDM result is dependent upon doing each step correctly and this begins with the patient. Since we are interested in measuring differences in tissue resulting from differences in regional metabolism and blood flow, it is important that nothing interfere with our ability to enhance this regional blood flow.
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When people eat food, drink caffeinated beverages, or take certain medications, they shift where their blood goes in their body.
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Since we are not interested in looking at how well you digest food, but where your blood is normally going, it is important for you not eat, drink or taken medications for approximately 10-12 hours before the FMTVDM study.
You may have sips of water and you should check with your doctor about which medicines you should or shouldn't take before FMTVDM.
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Upon arrival for FMTVDM imaging - following the typical bureaucratic paperwork associated with any medical visit - you will have an intravenous (IV) catheter placed into a vein, through which both the enhancing agent - the drug which shifts blood flow - and the isotope will be given. This IV also makes it possible to give any other medications your doctor might want to give you.
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Why do we give you an enhancing agent?
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As discussed previously on this website, the more metabolically active your tissue is, the greater the regional blood flow.
Enhancing agents allow us to increase that blood flow further, delivering more isotope to areas of greater blood flow.
The difference between parts of your body with higher blood flow versus lower blood flow can then be measured and compared, differentiating the health of the tissue we are looking at. Finding problems sooner while defining what the problem is.
This also allows us to compare results before and after treatment (theranostics) to determine if your treatment is working - or not.
Saving time, money, resources, supplies and potentially lives.
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How do I know this? Because I checked to see if there was a difference in measured results between people who received enhancing agents and those who did not.
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The initial efforts by my friend Dr. Iraj Khalkhali - Miraluma - using isotopes to find breast cancer, had several major limitations/weakness.
The first was the absence of camera calibration making any measurement moot.
The second was a failure to recognize the importance of regional metabolic and blood flow differences between types of tissue. To be fair, only cardiologists - specifically nuclear cardiologists - compare what's happening in your body under different states of blood flow. Frankly, these differences (flow reserve) are poorly understood by most cardiologists.
Third, was the acceptance and use of the medical model which places patients in one of two categories - those with disease and those without. There is no recognition that there is a transition that must occur during the process. Short of being in a traumatic situation where you go from no problem to potential death; most disease (ITIRD) goes through a continuum of change before you get to the final problem.
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This rather simplistic approach works will for our flawed medical billing system which demands the use of ICD and CPT codes to define which diseases are present or not for the purposes of billing patients - in contrast to actually taking care of patients.
This also encourages a simplistic approach, focusing on disease instead of health and a simple yes/no approach to problems. A yes/no approach that encourages misdiagnosis, producing sensitivity and specificity errors, increasing the amount of money spent on testing and treatment, while failing to focus on improving the health of the patient under the care of the doctor or other healthcare provider. Instead focusing on money and the disease.
For a better appreciation of this concept, please go to the "Health Model - Not Disease Model" tab.
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By measuring and comparing changes, FMTVDM can determine where you are on the health spectrum. Shifting our mode of thinking from a disease model to where are you on the health spectrum and what can we do to improve your health versus treating a disease. In short, the difference is between caring for you or caring for a disease.
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During the initial development of FMTVDM, a series of patients underwent imaging using a non-enhanced approach (Miraluma) and my enhanced approach (B.E.S.T.). Using quantitatively calibrated cameras, the results of each patient was using both approaches was measured and compared.
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For individuals with normal (healthy) breast tissue, there was a slight increase in measured activity using FMTVDM compared with the non-enhanced Miraluma approach. However, there was no statistical difference - the scientific math used to determine if the difference is meaningful.
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Women with inflammatory (inflam; ITIRD) changes, i.e. breast tissue with an actual increase in measured regional blood flow and metabolism, showed a greater delivery and uptake of the isotope following enhancement of blood flow, using FMTVDM to measure the differences. Thes differences were statistically significant (p<0.05) - i.e. important.
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Finally, for the women with breast cancer - an ITIRD with even more regional blood flow and metabolism, the difference between the enhanced and non-enhanced approaches were even greater (p<0.01).
Using the enhancing agent increased differences in tissue. When combined with FMTVDM quantitative measurements, differences between normal, inflammatory and cancer (ITIRDs) tissue are apparent.
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This also means we can not, and should not, think in terms of light switches - on/off, yes/no. Instead we must treat health as a rheostat, where there is a continuum. When a rheostat is used, the amount of light changes but differences are not defined by is the light on or off. Instead it's where is the rheostat setting and which direction are we moving it?
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Following the delivery of the enhancing agent and the isotope, FMTVDM imaging begins. The timing and delivery of the enhancing agent, isotope and FMTVDM imaging sequence, depends upon the type of camera and isotope being used.
As you have seen from your prior reading on this website, early imaging is necessary to find many of these health issues. The ability to enhance the regional blood flow throughout the body, to find these health problems, means we must image sooner than later.
All of these factors will also determine the amount of time it will take for the study to be completed. You can expect studies to take no longer than 60-minutes (when the heart is included) - usually less.
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With time, whole body imaging cameras will make it possible for FMTVDM to measure changes in regional blood flow and metabolism from head to toe within 1-hour - possibly less - using a single dose of enhancing agent and isotope.
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The end result will be an entire FMTVDM body analysis, defining the state of health of every part of your body.
For patients with cancer, this will also allow staging (spread of primary cancer) to be completed at the same time the primary cancer is found. Consequently decreasing the amount of time required to find and stage cancers before treatment can be started AND doing so with a single dose of radiation (isotope).​​
The following example shows part of the sequence that occurs when obtaining FMTVDM - B.E.S.T. (Breast Cancer) Imaging. The left panel shows initial images. The panel on the right shows regions of interest (ROI) measurements following FMTVDM. Like FMTVDM heart imaging, this can be done manually by the nuclear technologist or by computer software allowing pixel to pixel comparison.
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Each approach, manual or computer, allows not only the state of health to be defined, but the size of the areas to be defined.
Visual images are provided for people to see the breast. However, it is not the appearance of the breast image that is important, but rather, the measured FMTVDM values.
It is important to understand that these values change depending upon the type of camera used, the isotope and enhancing agent used as well as what part of the body we are imaging for FMTVDM measurement.
In this instance you can see the measured differences in breast health as measured by FMTVDM.
