Approximately 95,000 scans were carried out in the first half of this year, Health Minister Joe Cassar said, thanking the radiographers who made it happen on World Radiography Day yesterday.

Looking ahead, Dr Cassar mentioned the future inclusion of a PET scan in the local hospital, something which was only available to patients through a contract between Mater Dei Hospital and private hospitals.

The Medical Imaging Department at Mater Dei saw no less than 70,000 X-rays, 11,000 ultrasounds, 84,000 CT scans, 3,500 MRIs and 1,800 mammograms in the first six months of the year.

While thanking the radiologists for their work, Dr Cassar highlighted that a significant amount of money was invested in the care of each patient who entered the department.

Without radiographers, the minister said, the department’s wheels would not turn. He appealed to students to take up the profession, highlighting the advancements of university in this department.

Just last month, he said, 12 students entered a diagnostic and therapeutic radiography course, a first for Malta.

“Can you imagine a world without X-rays and ultrasounds?” Dr Cassar said, emphasising the way imaging had transformed the care of patients.