In that $3-5k cost of running a PET scan, I wonder how much of that is paying professional operators and physicians to interpret the results?
Could ML be applied to this problem to reduce the cost of a PET scan?
The high dollar cost may also be related to newer, more sensitive machines that don't require as much radiation exposure to the patient.
[1] https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/conditionsandtrea...
I believe the way it works is that the injected source emits positrons as it decays (having swiped them from the vacuum), shortly thereafter, these annihilate with the electrons of your body, and the scanner looks for the signature pair of gamma rays thus created, using the relative time of arrival to determine their common origin in 3-space. That reduces the problem of scanning to arranging for the decaying source to accumulate in the place we wish to scan which apparently can be done.
That we scan ourselves by annihilating antimatter with our bodies in targeted ways just seems so awesome to me.
I want professional operators and physicians to look at my details.
What I don't want is dozens of layers of middlemen or ticket clippers (or healthcare driven by profit).
It doesn't outside of the US.
In fact, manufacturers are required to report such prices annually to the federal government, which bases Medicare payments on the average national price plus 6 percent. The limit for one liter of normal saline (a little more than a quart) went to $1.07 this year from 46 cents in 2010, an increase manufacturers linked to the cost of raw materials, fuel and transportation.
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/27/health/exploring-salines-s...
(which implies that manufacturers aren't the primary beneficiaries of the price that the hospitals charge)
"Hartmanns IV Solution AU$2.73 ex GST
Baxter 0.18% SODIUM CHLORIDE & 4% GLUCOSE IV SOLN 500ML AU$3.72 ex GST " https://www.medshop.com.au/consumables/intravenous-solutions...
The lack of quality health insurance means that a substantial number of people finance healthcare via bankruptcy. That's all priced in. As an insured person or private payer, you pay dramatically more as a result -- it's a hidden tax.