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Q&A with Sally W. Schwarz, 2016-2017 President of SNMMI

by Sean Ruck, Contributing Editor | June 13, 2016
From the June 2016 issue of HealthCare Business News magazine


HCB News: Is there anything new you’d like to highlight for the upcoming show and conference?
SS:
Since SNMMI is an international society, we’re starting a program to focus on a country other than the U.S. that has been significantly involved with SNMMI. This year, we’ll be featuring Japan as the first country. Their physicians and scientists have provided a large number of abstract submissions, and they’ve been very involved in collaborations and in attending our annual meetings. Each year, we will feature another country involved with SNMMI meetings and activities. I think that’s an excellent opportunity to increase collaboration and say thank you.

HCB News: What are the biggest challenges facing SNMMI today?
SS:
Nuclear medicine is positioned on the cutting edge of medicine, and health care delivery is changing. This means that we must concurrently address multiple issues involved in that change. I think there is a challenge between technologies as to what is the best tool to use for diagnosis of disease. We need to gather the data that allow us to demonstrate that nuclear medicine is able to direct or change patient management in a cost-effective way. We additionally have to be aware of the problems with reimbursements, and work to address those problems.

HCB News: What abilities will nuclear medicine physicians need to be competitive in the future?
SS:
Training is important in multiple modalities, including PET/CT, PET/MR and SPECT/ CT used for diagnosis and following therapy. Molecular imaging training involves more sophisticated imaging than in the past and the development of new agents will continue to increase training requirements. Radionuclide therapy is a growing area that will require training emphasis. You also need to have a business understanding, including dealing with reimbursement and third-party payers. This broad scope needs to be understood and planned for in the training of future nuclear medicine physicians.

HCB News: Is there anything particularly exciting in the realm of radionuclides?
SS:
I think one exciting area is theranostics. This utilizes nuclear medicine imaging for diagnosis, followed by targeted radionuclide therapy. Additionally, this diagnostic imaging can also be used post treatment to follow the patient’s progress. One new combination for the U.S. is Gallium-68 for diagnostic imaging and Lutetium-177 for therapy. These paired radionuclides are being used to diagnose and treat neuroendocrine tumors. Zirconium-89 is a newer radionuclide being utilized for diagnostic research for antibody radiolabeling, and Copper 64, which has been used for quite a while, is more involved in clinical research imaging.

HCB News: What do you think the field will look like 10 years from now?
SS:
The future is difficult to predict. I see an increase in the use of diagnostic radiopharmaceuticals to guide the progress of therapy, and an increase in the use of radionuclide therapy.

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