A signing ceremony between Hefei Ruishi and Hefei National High-tech Industry Development Zone is held on Aug 17. [Photo/WeChat account: hefeigaoxinfabu]

Hefei Ruishi signed an agreement to develop its full-digital PET (positron emission tomography) project in Hefei National High-tech Industry Development Zone in Hefei, capital of East China's Anhui province, on Aug 17.

The company plans to invest a minimum of 2 billion yuan ($307.6 million) in total to build its high-end medical equipment headquarters in the zone. The project is expected to go public within five years and occupy over 40 percent of the domestic PET market.

Local government officials met with Xie Qingguo, founder of Hefei Ruishi and inventor of digital PET, at the signing ceremony. They pledged to give full support to the company's development in the zone, such as assisting with its financing plan.

Xie's team invented full-digital PET technology in 2004 and developed a number of the world's first medical equipment, such as the world's first animal full-digital PET scientific instrument, the world's first clinical full-digital PET medical equipment, the world's first standard CMOS silicon photomultiplier, as well as the world's first brain-specific full-digital PET system.

PET is an effective way to help assess organ and tissue function. It is mainly clinically used for early discovery and diagnosis of cancer, heart disease, as well as brain disorders. Compared with traditional PET, the full-digital PET technology is more accurate, easier to use, and has wider applications.

Hefei National High-tech Industry Development Zone is home to nearly 400 biomedical companies. [Photo/WeChat account: hefeigaoxinfabu]