Positron Emission Tomography (PET) By Mehmet Kocak, MD, Rush University Medical Center Reviewed / Revised Apr 2021 | Modified Sep 2022 View Patient Education Uses of PET Variations Disadvantages of PET Topic Resources FDG-PET-CT Positron emission tomography (PET), a type of radionuclide scanning, uses compounds containing radionuclides that decay by releasing a positron (the positively charged antimatter equivalent of an electron).