Week in Review: New PET method for Alzheimer’s | Match Day 2025 | Closing the loop with referrals

Dear AuntMinnie Member,

Our most popular article this week reported on research presenting a new approach to diagnosing and staging Alzheimer’s disease using brain PET exams. Investigators from Germany have developed a technique that accounts for the amount of the brain that’s “filled” with amyloid, tau, and neurodegeneration – three hallmark abnormalities associated with the disease.

More radiology residency positions were filled on Match Day 2025 than ever before, but a few spots still remained unfilled. Get all of the details in our second most highly viewed story.

Free clinics often generate imaging referrals. However, a site in Ohio has found that less than half of these studies were completed. What can be done to increase that percentage? Click here to learn about their recommendations.

In other news, PET/CT with a prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) imaging agent enabled identification of atypical metastases in prostate cancer patients. Speaking of PET, whole-body scans could facilitate longitudinal tracking of the virus that causes COVID-19, according to a new study. And we’ve also got a feature on the promise of eight radionuclides for delivering targeted alpha therapy.

Meanwhile, a panel convened by the American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM) has expressed concerns over the radiation dose and image quality measures for CT that were accepted by the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) in 2023.

See the list below for all of our top stories from the week.

1. New method proposed for diagnosing Alzheimer’s
2. Diagnostic radiology positions fall short of 100% filled
3. Half of imaging referrals submitted by free clinic not completed
4. PSMA PET/CT identifies ‘atypical’ metastases in prostate cancer patients
5. AAPM: CMS measure for reporting CT radiation dose riddled with ‘ambiguities’
6. Whole-body PET visualizes COVID-19 infection
7. Targeted alpha therapy’s ‘elite 8’ radionuclides
8. Microultrasound could be alternative to MRI for prostate biopsy
9. Radiology research advocates use Hill Day to defend F&A costs
10. Generative AI model shows promise in chest x-ray study
11. PA Association for Sonographers cofounder talks goals
12. Nociceptive responses to contrast CT aren’t necessarily pathology
13. Radiology societies demand retraction of ‘flawed’ interventional guideline
14. Medical imaging research community navigates evolving U.S. NIH priorities

Erik L. Ridley
Editor in Chief
AuntMinnie.com