The Society of Nuclear Medicine & Molecular Imaging (SNMMI) will hold its 2025 Patient Day later this month. In support of this event, the Alliance sat down with three of the organization’s event committee leaders to help educate others about nuclear medicine and the upcoming event. Interviewees:
- Amy Fowler, MD, PhD, Associate Professor of Radiology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, and Co-Chair, SNMMI Outreach Committee
- Ephraim Parent, MD, PhD, Associate Professor of Radiology, Mayo Clinic Jacksonville (FL), and Co-Chair, SNMMI Outreach Committee
- Mike Crosby, Founder, Veterans for Prostate Cancer Awareness, and Chair, SNMMI Patient Advocacy Advisory Committee
Tell us about the Society of Nuclear Medicine & Molecular Imaging (SNMMI). What is your mission, main priorities, and who are your members?
Amy Fowler: SNMMI’s official mission is to “improve human health by advancing nuclear medicine, molecular imaging, and radionuclide therapy.” In plain terms, this means the Society is a place where those of us who have chosen to dedicate our clinical and/or research careers to nuclear medicine can collaborate to find ways to use this technology to improve patients’ lives.
It is a very research- and education- oriented organization, and its members include physicians, technologists, physicists, chemists, and pharmacists. We also do have a Patient Advocacy Advisory Board (PAAB), so although the Society does not have patients as members, that board is key to ensuring the patient perspective is incorporated into its activities.
Mike Crosby: As Chairman of the SNMMI Patient Advocacy Advisory Board, my mission is to amplify the voices of patients and advocacy groups from all disease areas. I work to ensure that nuclear medicine and molecular imaging are not only understood but also accessible and integrated into the standard of care—especially where they can improve early detection, accurate diagnosis, and treatment monitoring.
I see my role as a bridge between the patient community and the nuclear medicine field, helping guide SNMMI’s efforts to be more patient-centered in its education, research, and policy initiatives. My goal is to advance access, equity, and outcomes through the power of precision imaging and therapy.
What is one thing each of you would like our audience to know about nuclear medicine and molecular imaging?
- Amy Fowler: Molecular imaging is very targeted, and so it is an exciting way to diagnose and treat specific types of cancer and other diseases; ongoing research is discovering all kinds of new possibilities for patients.
- Ephraim Parent: Nuclear medicine has seen dramatic changes over the past 10 years, with molecular imaging now considered an essential part of the diagnosis and management of disparate disorders, including, but not limited to, oncology, dementia, and cardiac disease. Additionally, we are seeing rapid integration of nuclear medicine into the therapeutic practice for approved treatments for prostate cancer and neuroendocrine carcinomas and also extensive growth in radionuclide therapy research.
- Mike Crosby: Nuclear medicine has changed and shaped my personal care journey—it has provided five powerful images through three recurrences, each bringing sharper answers, better choices, and renewed hope.
What is the SNMMI Patient Education Day?
Mike Crosby: Patient Education Day takes place each year during SNMMI’s Annual Meeting and is organized by the Patient Advocacy Advisory Board to help patients and caregivers understand the role nuclear medicine plays in diagnosing and treating disease.
It is a unique opportunity to hear directly from physicians who work in nuclear medicine as well as oncologists, neurologists, and other specialists about how these targeted procedures work and how they help patients, and it is free to anyone who is interested.
Our 2025 event is being held June 22 at the New Orleans Convention Center and will be livestreamed as well.
Can you give us a sneak peek into any exciting updates that patients will hear on the latest developments in radiopharmaceutical therapies during the event?
Ephraim Parent: Within the past few years, nuclear medicine has seen several new radiopharmaceuticals receive FDA approval for oncology diagnosis and treatment, including new therapies for patients with prostate cancer and neuroendocrine carcinomas. Of note for both physicians and patients, these radionuclide therapies see benefit in malignancies that have been unable to be managed with more traditional forms of management such as chemotherapy and immunotherapy. Additionally, unlike other systemic treatments, these radio nuclide therapies are typically well tolerated by patients and allow them to have a better quality of life.
There are currently nearly 1,300 trials happening in the nuclear medicine space, so we’re looking forward to a future where we have even more and better solutions for patients.
One of the most interesting parts of Patient Education Day, for those who can attend in-person, is our “Meet the Author” session in the SNMMI Science Pavillion, where attendees will hear directly from researchers about their studies and how their findings could ultimately affect patients. This year, they’ll meet with researchers doing studies on Alzheimer’s disease, breast cancer, neuroendocrine tumors, and prostate cancer.
How is SNMMI collaborating with patient advocacy groups to co-create content or sessions for Patient Education Day?
Mike Crosby: We mentioned earlier the SNMMI Patient Advocacy Advisory Board (PAAB), which is central to this effort. The PAAB includes representatives from 18 national patient advocacy organizations, spanning nearly every disease area that nuclear medicine impacts—such as the Alzheimer’s Association, ZERO Prostate Cancer, the Lymphoma Research Foundation, the Lobular Breast Cancer Alliance, and many more.
Each year, these advocacy partners work hand-in-hand with SNMMI’s Outreach Committee and staff to develop the Patient Education Day agenda. This includes shaping topics, identifying key speakers, and ensuring the content speaks directly to patient needs—whether it’s explaining a new diagnostic scan, a targeted therapy, or how to access clinical trials.
Our goal is to create a program with patients, not just for them—and to deliver real, understandable, and empowering information. That collaboration is what makes Patient Education Day so special: It reflects the voices and concerns of real people navigating complex diseases, and it highlights how nuclear medicine can offer clarity and hope.
How is SNMMI empowering patients to be active participants in shaping policies that affect nuclear medicine and molecular imaging services? Will there be sessions dedicated to educating patients about current legislative efforts?
Mike Crosby: SNMMI works closely with the PAAB and other advocacy groups to involve patients directly in shaping public policy. Every year during SNMMI’s Capitol Hill Day, we’re proud to have patients join us in meetings with lawmakers, sharing their personal stories and underscoring the importance of legislation that improves access to nuclear medicine procedures.
We recently saw the impact of this collaboration with a major policy win in 2024: The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services updated their reimbursement guidelines, improving access to key diagnostic scans—something we had advocated for over many years.
Beyond Hill Day, SNMMI supports patients in organizing virtual congressional visits, letter-writing campaigns, and grassroots awareness efforts. While Patient Education Day is primarily focused on the clinical applications of nuclear medicine, we’ll be sharing resources to help patients advocate for their own care and learn more about broader policy initiatives. And of course, our PAAB and SNMMI members will be available throughout the event to talk with any attendees interested in becoming more engaged in national advocacy efforts.
Are there plans to feature patient stories or testimonials to provide real-world perspectives on nuclear medicine treatments?
Mike Crosby: Absolutely. One of the most powerful parts of Patient Education Day is hearing directly from patients who’ve lived through these diseases and experienced nuclear medicine firsthand.
Each of our three afternoon breakout sessions—focused on Alzheimer’s disease, prostate cancer, and neuroendocrine tumors—will feature patients who are currently navigating or have previously faced those diagnoses. They’ll share their journeys, the role nuclear medicine played in their care, and what they’ve learned along the way.
In addition, SNMMI will present a video spotlight during the Annual Meeting featuring one of our PAAB members—a woman who received nuclear medicine treatment for thyroid cancer as a teenager. That story will be shared not just with patients, but with the entire clinical and scientific audience, helping connect the human experience to the science and technology behind nuclear medicine.
Will the upcoming Patient Education Day be accessible to patients who cannot attend in person, such as through virtual sessions or recorded materials?
Amy Fowler: The event will be livestreamed on YouTube, and those recordings will remain on YouTube for at least a few years.
Where can patients and caregivers learn more about SNMMI and the 2025 Patient Day?
Ephraim Parent: The full program, including links to register for both the in-person or virtual programs, can be found on the SNMMI website at www.snmmi.org/ped. We look forward to a great event.
