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Neuro-Oncology University of Washington Medical Center |
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Neuro-oncology Team / Team Members:
Janet
Eary, M.D. Dr. Janet Eary, Director of the Nuclear Medicine program at the University of Washington Medical Center and affiliated hospitals is a board certified Nuclear Medicine physician and Pathologist. She holds the rank of Professor in both departments. In addition to directing the clinics at the UWMC, her career interests have focused on imaging and treatment in cancer. Her specialty involves assessment of new radiolabeled drugs and biomolecules for use in patients in both imaging and treatment. This work has involved characterization of a number of new radiopharmaceuticals and techniques for their implementation. Perhaps most well known is her work in experimetal treatment of hematologic malignancies in conjunction with the investigators at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center using high dose radiolabeled antibodies in combination with bone marrow transplant. Metbolic imaging of tumors using positron emission tomography is another research interest of Dr. Eary. Working with the neuro-oncology group at the UWMC she applies these specialized imaging techniques to problems in patients with brain tumors. Currently she leads a project in which [C-11] thymidine is used as the imaging agent to determine tumor growth rate in response to therapy. Using this new agent in positron tomography, quantitative images depicting tumor growth rate are produced. This technique is particularly useful in experimental therapies where a response to treatment can be determined at any point throughout the course of therapy non-invasively. [C-11] thymidine can also be used as a sensitive way to determine tumor viability. Dr. Eary works closely with Drs. Spence, Silbergeld , and Mankoff in applying these techniques in brain tumor patients at the UWMC.
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