At the new Stony Brook Cancer Center, researchers and clinicians are transforming the future of cancer care. The combination of state-of-the art technology, world-class imaging experts and innovative research teams will lead to diagnosing cancer and monitoring cancer treatments with greater specificity.

The Kavita and Lalit Bahl Molecular Imaging Laboratory is located on Level 4 in the Medical and Research Translation (MART) building. A cyclotron (particle accelerator) that generates short-lived radioactive tracer molecules sits adjacent to a PET scanner and research labs. The combination of the advanced technology with PET imaging gives Stony Brook clinicians and scientists the ability to view the molecules in relation to the cancer. The goal is to target disease with greater precision, evaluate cancer drug delivery, and study changes in cancer metabolism to determine effectiveness. This leading-edge technology is revolutionizing our understanding of cancer by helping researchers discover how cancer starts, grows and spreads, and how different therapies and drugs affect cancer cells.

In addition, our cancer care teams have access to a wide array of advanced imaging technology on the Stony Brook Medicine campus, including the only PET/MRI in Suffolk County. This technology combines positron emission tomography (PET) with images made from magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). These two pictures of the body together – in a single high-resolution image – give physicians an unprecedented level of clarity and detail. This makes it possible to find, explore, stage and treat cancer more quickly and accurately than ever before.