RadNet to Offer New Alzheimer’s Disease Imaging Technique

LOS ANGELES, July 30, 2012 – RadNet Inc. (NASDAQ: RDNT), a national leader in providing high-quality, cost-effective, fixed-site outpatient diagnostic imaging services through a network of 237 owned and/or operated outpatient imaging centers, announced it will offer Amyvid™, a radioactive tracer used in positron emission tomography – computed tomography (PET/CT) imaging, at more locations across the United States than any other imaging provider. Amyvid is the first test that can effectively rule out Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) in patients who are being evaluated for cognitive impairment.

Every patient with AD has increased levels of β-amyloid plaque deposits in the brain at autopsy. Amyvid binds to β-amyloid plaque and allows a PET/CT image to detect their presence. A positive Amyvid scan indicates moderate to frequent β-amyloid plaques are present. While this amount of β-amyloid plaque is present in patients with AD, it is also found in patients with other types of neurologic conditions and in older people with normal cognition.

“A negative Amyvid scan provides persuasive evidence AD is not the cause for a patient’s observed cognitive decline,” said Dr. Judith Rose, director of PET/CT and nuclear medicine for RadNet. “This imaging technique will allow researchers to design more selective clinical trials for the next generation of treatment options.”

Prior to the release of Amyvid PET/CT imaging, physicians had limited tools to definitively diagnose a patient with AD. More than 20 percent of AD cases are currently misdiagnosed. AD is the sixth leading cause of death in the US. Among the top 10 causes of death, AD is the only one that cannot be medically cured, prevented or slowed down. Between 2000 and 2008 the United States saw a 66 percent rise in deaths caused by AD.

“Our patients benefit from a national reading and reporting standard established by the largest provider of imaging services in the US,” said RadNet President and Chief Executive Officer Dr. Howard Berger. “In support of this development in AD imaging, RadNet has established an Amyvid reading protocol above and beyond Eli Lilly’s expectations. Two Amyvid certified radiologists will arrive at a single consensus after independently interpreting each scan.”

Amyvid scans will initially be available at the following RadNet locations through the “Shine a New Light on Dementia” initiative (a doctor’s prescription is required):
•    Beverly Tower Wilshire Advanced Imaging Center (Beverly Hills, CA);
•    Liberty Pacific Advanced Imaging (Encino, CA);
•    Orange Advanced Imaging Center (Orange, CA);
•    Rancho Mirage Interventional Radiology and Imaging Center (Rancho Mirage, CA);
•    Temecula Valley Imaging Center (Temecula, CA);
•    Rolling Oaks Radiology (Thousand Oaks, CA);
•    NorCal Imaging (Walnut Creek, CA);
•    Advanced Radiology Imaging (Baltimore, MD);
•    American Radiology Services (Columbia, MD); and
•    Hudson Valley Radiology Associates (Nyack, NY).

About RadNet, Inc.
RadNet, Inc. is a national leader in providing high-quality, cost-effective, fixed-site outpatient diagnostic imaging services through a network of 237 owned and/or operated outpatient imaging centers (inclusive of 23 facilities held in joint ventures). RadNet's core markets include California, Delaware, Maryland, Rhode Island, New Jersey and New York. Together with affiliated radiologists, and inclusive of full-time and per diem employees and technicians, RadNet has a total of approximately 6,300 employees. For more information, visit RadNet.com.

RadNet, Inc.
Andrew Ausanka-Crues
PR Manager
(562) 418-3976
acrues@RadNet.com