PET scanner resumes operation after three months; nine patients scheduled for first day

The PET scanner at the national medical centre has returned to service after being offline for three months, Health Minister Sasho Klekovski announced.

For the first day back the centre scheduled nine patients after a shipment of medical radioisotopes arrived from Istanbul. Klekovski said the Ministry is also negotiating additional isotope deliveries from Sofia to allow scanning on Saturdays, because the supplier in Istanbul does not dispatch on Fridays and cannot cover late-week appointments.

Impact and short‑term measures

According to the minister, the PET scanner has historically performed about 2,100–2,200 scans per year. Last year, under new management, the service reached a record 2,700 scans — close to the maximum capacity of a single machine. Before the recent restart, roughly 1,100 scans were completed during routine servicing; with intensified scheduling he expects the annual total to reach around 2,200–2,300 this year.

Klekovski noted that health systems in reference countries aim for 5,000–6,000 PET scans annually, since the machine is used not only for oncology and hematology patients but also in neurology. He said he remains in continuous contact with the PET centre and the Oncology, Hematology and Neurology clinics to secure uninterrupted diagnostics.

“I have said this many times, that we should procure a second PET camera and alternative supply plans in case the cyclotron is under repair or breaks down,” Klekovski said. As an additional long‑term measure, the Ministry plans to buy further equipment to reduce dependency on a single device.

Daily scheduling will continue at a pace of nine to ten patients, and the minister expressed hope that the outstanding issue with the cyclotron will be resolved soon.

Photo: press material from the event