Áreas de Especialización

Certains points are worth mentioning, such as the fact that the Diagnostic Imaging Service of Hospitales Universitarios San Roque in Las Palmas of G. C. was  the first to include a 3-Tesla High-Field Resonance and a Very High-Field Open Resonance – unique in the Archipelago and one of the few in Spain -  which allow us to carry out non-invasive high-resolution scans and obtain sectional images on any spatial plane by digitally processing the electromagnetic waves emitted by the atoms’ nuclei when exposed to a magnetic field.

It is a friendly machine with one major advantage: unlike closed machines, claustrophobia is virtually non-existent. This is particularly important when dealing with children, complicated cases, or people who fear being immobilized for long periods of time, while maintaining the quality of images. All of this while having the patient’s best interests in mind.

In addition, this department was the first to have a 128-Channel Multi-slice CT- Scan, (a computerized axial tomography scan), a technology that allows us to perform a full body scan in under a minute, apart from providing non-invasive, high-resolution, three-dimensional imaging of the coronary arteries.

Qualifications, technology and functionality

Our qualified human team is backed by cutting-edge technology. The Diagnostic Imaging Service was the first in the Canary Islands to be fully digital, as early as the year 2000, even at our facilities in Lanzarote. We started with Radiography, followed by CAT and Resonance, and finished with mammography. This means, that in addition to obtaining very high-resolution images which allow us to reach very accurate diagnosis for the patient’s reassurance, we can also file scans, make copies with the same quality as the original in any media format in case of loss or travel.

Following this line of technological innovation, Hospitales Universitarios San Roque has also added to this service and to the Nuclear Medicine Department, the PET/CT technique, a hybrid between two imaging techniques (PET: Positron Emission Tomography / CT: Computed Tomography), which provides a metabolic image with which we can detect the presence of damaged areas at a very early stage, when they are still very small. With this, we finish our Comprehensive Oncology Circuit, with the most advanced technology available in private health centres in the Canary Islands for the early detection of cancer.

As for breast cancer, our service is the only one in the Canary Islands equipped to perform contrast-enhanced spectral mammography, which consists in taking two images of the suspicious breast, one with contrast and another one without it. By subtracting the contrast-free image, we are left with what the contrast has captured: those are the tumours. There are very few hospitals in Spain capable of performing this type of tests, which is the most reliable one and that is why we have introduced it in several congresses as our own unique programme.   

Lastly, in terms of functionality, we have designed a single service that combines Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, while keeping the architectural design and environmental quality in mind: Radiology is at the heart of every healthcare centre, diagnostic tests are essential to identify the different pathologies of our patients, and therefore its location should be well located to help the staff carry out their work more efficiently and for the patient’s comfort, which is always at the top of our priorities.