By SUSAN CARDINAL .
It looks something like a donut. It’s attached to

tig

a bed after a fashion and it’s hooked up to a
sophisticated computer. It lays claim to a heritage
haunted by the twang of electric guitars and, with
a price of more than $800,000, it’s worth a bundle.

It’s the Computerized
Axial Tomography (CT or
CAT scanner for short).
Billed as the single most
important piece of new
diagnostic techfology this
century, the CT Scanner is
Lions Gate Hospital's most
prized acquisition, although
the scanner won't be
delivered until the fall.

The hospital had to raise a
quarter of the money for

purchase of the scanner,
which is used to help
diagnose tumors. The
hospital's share, $225,000,
was raised through the ef-
forts of community groups,
including the hospital's 500
member auxilliary, and the
North Shore's ambulance
attendants, firemen and
police.

The auxilliary raised
$200,000 and the ambulance

attendants,
police raised $19,000
through a raffle organized by
ambulance worker Donald
Bird. .

Only a few weeks ago the
provincial government
announced it would pick up
the bulk of the costs for the

scanner, climaxing three
years of lobbying for
BODY SCANNER

Hospital Administrator.

John Borthwick was pleased
that the government decided
to fund a full body scanner,

firemen and

instead of the head scanner
which the hospital expected.
. “I didn’t believe it,” said
Borthwick. “With everybody
screaming doom and gloom
about bucks”, he-thought the
hospital's drive for funding
would be shuttled to the
backburner, said Borthwick.
The hospital had planned
‘on buying a lower cost head
scanner (which would have
been used for diagnosing
brain tumors) and then
converting it to a total body
scanner at some time in the
future. But with = the
government decision LGH
can do full body scans as

LGH's SCANNER will lpok much like the full body scamacr in place at Vancouver General Hospital when it's
delivered this fall, (Photo courtesy Vancouver General Hospital).

verything for the HOMES:

soon as the scanner is
delivered this fall.
Local governments are

also footing part of the bill
for the CT Scanner.

The bulk of the cost,
$800,000, is for the scanner
itself. An additional $50,000
or so is needed to refurbish a
special room in the new wing
of the hospital. The room
must be air-conditioned for
the computer, and must also
be lined with lead to avoid

possible radiation § effects
from the x-rays.
The development and

sophistication of the CT
Scanner almost matches the
discovery of penicillin in

importance, said Dr. Jim
Corbett, the hospital's
medical coordinator. “It's
virtually amazing,” he told
the News.

But what does _ this
amazing donut do?

The CT Scanner is a

sophisticated diagnostic tool

that takes thousands of
pictures of the inside of the
human body. This gives
doctors an _ inestimable
advantage in diagnosing a
tumor or growth.

The scanner, for example,
can discover if a tumor in the
kidney if cystic or solid,
which in turn enables the
doctor to determine if an
Operation is necessary, said
Corbett.

USES LIGHT

The scanner uses relative
light densities to take the
pictures, and. the in-
formation is passed to the
attached computer, which
translates it for hospital
staff. An extremely clear
picture of the anatomy of the
scanned body area is
produced.

At first, the CT or CAT
Scanner was used only for

CONTINUED ON PAGE C2

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