Medical Physics and Nuclear Medicine

Medical Physics or Nuclear Medicine is primarily a diagnostic imaging service, which uses radioactivity to see inside the body.

Nuclear medicine images are used to see how a part of the body is functioning, which is different from other medical scans like x-ray or MRI, which show structure. A low dose of radioactive substance is given into the body, usually by injection and a special gamma camera is used to take pictures.

Pregnant or breastfeeding patients should phone the department before their test as there may be special instructions or the test may be postponed, due to the radiation dose to the baby.