David Edmund Kuhl (October 27, 1929 in

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an Independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Miss ...

– May 28, 2017 in

Ann Arbor, Michigan Ann Arbor is a city in Washtenaw County, Michigan, United States, and its county seat. The 2020 United States census, 2020 census recorded its population to be 123,851, making it the List of municipalities in Michigan, fifth-most populous cit ...

) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

scientist specializing in

nuclear medicine Nuclear medicine (nuclear radiology, nucleology), is a medical specialty involving the application of radioactivity, radioactive substances in the diagnosis and treatment of disease. Nuclear imaging is, in a sense, ''radiology done inside out'', ...

. He was well known for his pioneering work in

positron emission tomography Positron emission tomography (PET) is a functional imaging technique that uses radioactive substances known as radiotracers to visualize and measure changes in metabolic processes, and in other physiological activities including blood flow, r ...

. Dr. Kuhl served as the Chief of the Division of Nuclear Medicine at the

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

for 20 years and retired in June 2011.

Education and career

He obtained M.D.from

University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine The Perelman School of Medicine (commonly known as Penn Med) is the medical school of the University of Pennsylvania, a Private university, private, Ivy League research university located in Philadelphia. Founded in 1765, the Perelman School of M ...

in 1955 and then completed his residency at

Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania The Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania (HUP) is the flagship hospital of Penn Medicine and is located in the University City section of West Philadelphia. History The hospital was founded at its current location in 1874 by the Universi ...

in 1962. During his time at Penn he developed a new method of tomographic imaging and constructed several tomographic instruments. These tomographic imaging techniques he invented were further developed in the 1970s and now called

or PET. He joined the University of Michigan Medical School faculty in 1986 and worked to develop the use of FDG metabolism scanning in human brains. During his time as Chief of the Division of Nuclear Medicine and Director of the Center for Positron Emission Tomography, the University of Michigan became one of the first US institutions to offer clinical diagnostic PET services. His discoveries and clinical translations helped lead to the routine clinical use of PET in neurology, cardiology and oncology in the US and worldwide.

Honors

* 1976 Nuclear Pioneer (awarded by the

Society of Nuclear Medicine The Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging (SNMMI), formerly the Society of Nuclear Medicine, is a nonprofit scientific and professional organization that promotes the science, technology and practical application of nuclear medicine a ...

) * 1981

Ernst Jung Prize The Ernst Jung Prize is a prize awarded annually for excellence in biomedical sciences. The Ernst Jung Foundation, funded by Hamburg merchant Ernst Jung in 1967, has awarded the Ernst Jung Prize in Medicine, now €300,000, since 1976, and the lif ...

* 2001

Kettering Prize The Charles F. Kettering Prize was a US$250,000 award given by the General Motors Cancer Research Foundation for the most outstanding recent contribution to the diagnosis or treatment of cancer. __TOC__ History The award was named in honor of Ch ...

* 2009

Japan Prize is awarded to individuals whose original and outstanding achievements in science and technology are recognized as having advanced the frontiers of knowledge and served the cause of peace and prosperity for mankind. As of 2024, the Japan Prize h ...

References

External links

Profile
at

University of Michigan Health System The University of Michigan Medicine (branded as Michigan Medicine) is the academic medical center of the University of Michigan, a public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan. It consists of the university's Medical School, affiliated hos ...

* (Japan Prize)
Professorship at the University of Michigan Medical School Department of Radiology
ref> 1929 births 2017 deaths Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania alumni University of Michigan faculty American radiologists American nuclear medicine physicians Members of the National Academy of Medicine Scientists from St. Louis {{US-scientist-stub