In order for personalized medicine to become a clinical reality a number of hurdles, both technological and regulatory in nature, need to be addressed. Our ability to image biological and pathological processes at a molecular level using positron emission tomography (PET) imaging offers an unparalleled opportunity to radically reform the manner in which a disease is diagnosed and managed. The degree to which current innovations in PET science will translate into clinical practice, thereby impacting upon personalized medicine, is discussed.