Medical diagnostic method and apparatus utilizing radioactivity detection

A medical diagnostic device comprising:

• a plurality of solid-state radioactivity sensors;
• carrier means attached to said sensors for enabling disposition of said sensors in any of a plurality of different nonplanar configurations relative to a patient;
• position sensors for determining the positions of said radioactivity sensors relative to one another upon a placing of said carrier means in any one of said configurations;
• and
• a position calculation unit operatively connected to said position sensors for computing positions of said radioactivity sensors relative to each other.

A medical diagnostic method comprising:

• administering to a patient a chemical composition containing a radioactive isotope;
• disposing about the patient a plurality of solid-state sensors sensitive to gamma rays generated by radioactive decay of said isotope;
• conducting signals from said solid-state sensors to a computer;
• providing position sensors for sensing positions of said solid-state sensors;
• conducting signals from said position sensors to said computer;
• and
• operating said computer to calculate relative positions of said solid-state sensors and to derive information about location and size of a source of radioactivity in the patient from the calculated relative positions of said solid-state sensors and from the signals conducted from said solid-state sensors.