Two scanners which can help detect cancer and heart problems have cut appointment waiting times at one of the country’s main hospitals from a month to two to three working days, according to the medical institution.
The Centre Hospitalier du Luxembourg (CHL) and Health Minister Martine Deprez officially unveiled the new PET – positron emission tomography – scanners on Monday, which have been operational since mid-October.
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The devices can examine up to 70 patients a day between them and are 2.5 times more accurate than the older devices, according to the hospital. This means that very small human tissue can be examined, while exposing patients to less radiation.
Luxembourg previously only had one PET scanner for the entire country but it was riddled with technical problems. In 2024, it broke down 16 times and led to the cancellation or postponement of 275 appointments, resulting in long waiting times for scans and a backlog of appointments.
The second scanner was originally supposed to be available at the start of January
At the beginning of October, the scanner was out of service for an entire week. To ensure continued operation until the new equipment was operational, the CHL put a loaned scanner into service.
The hospital uses PET technology in around 90% of cancer examinations and the machines can also be used to analyse inflammation and dementia, according to the CHL. The machine is used by all of the Grand Duchy’s main hospitals.
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Patients in Luxembourg have for years faced long waits for scans. Health Minister Martine Deprez said in October that waiting times for MRI scans in Luxembourg are “partly linked to the overuse of imaging equipment”.
The Robert Schuman hospital opened its Cloche d’Or hub in October, complete with a range of medical imagining equipment, but the move only came after months of delays.
The centre is equipped with an MRI scanner, a mammography machine, an X-ray machine and a CT scanner, according to the hospital.
(This story was originally published by the Luxemburger Wort, translated using AI and edited by Kate Oglesby.)
