Purpose: A retrospective analysis of the toxicity and efficacy of temozolomide in advanced neuroendocrine tumors. Experimental Design: Thirty-six patients with advanced stages of neuroendocrine tumor (1gastric, 7 thymic and 13 bronchial carcinoids, 12 pancreatic endocrine tumors, 1 paraganglioma, 1 neuroendocrine foregut, and 1 neuroendocrine cecal cancer) were treated with temozolomide (200 mg/m 2

The organs at risk in radionuclide therapy with 177 Lu-octreotate are the bone marrow and the kidneys. The primary aim of this study was to develop an individualized dosimetry protocol for the bone marrow. The secondary aim was to identify those patients, undergoing fractionated therapy with 7.4 GBq/cycle, who first reached an accumulated dose of either 2 Gy to the bone marrow or 23 Gy to the kidneys. Methods: Two hundred patients with metastatic neuroendocrine tumors with high somatostatin receptor expression were included. After the administration of 7.4 GBq of 177 Lu-octreotate, blood samples were drawn 6 times within the first 24 h. In 50 patients, additional blood samples were obtained at 96 and 168 h. Moreover, urine was collected from 30 patients during the first 24 h. Planar whole-body and SPECT/CT images over the abdomen were acquired at 24, 96, and 168 h after the infusion. Calculation of the absorbed radiation dose to the bone marrow was based on blood and urinary activity curves combined with organ-based analysis of the whole-body images. The absorbed dose to the kidney was calculated from the pharmacokinetic data obtained from SPECT/CT. Results: For a single cycle of 7.4 GBq, the absorbed dose to the bone marrow and the kidney ranged from 0.05 to 0.4 Gy and from 2 to 10 Gy, respectively. In 197 of 200 patients, the kidneys accumulated an absorbed dose of 23 Gy before the bone marrow reached 2 Gy. Between 2 and 10 cycles of 177 Lu-octreotate could be administered before the upper dose limit for the individual patient was reached. Conclusion: A method based on repeated whole-body imaging in combination with blood and urinary activity data over time was developed to determine the absorbed dose to the bone marrow. The dose-limiting organ was the kidney in 197 of 200 patients. In 50% of the patients, more than 4 cycles of 7.4 GBq of 177 Lu-octreotate could be administered, whereas 20% of the subjects were treated with fewer than 4 cycles. Individualized absorbed dose calculation is essential to optimize the therapy.

PurposePeptide receptor radionuclide therapy in patients with neuroendocrine tumours has yielded promising results. This prospective study investigated the feasibility of dosimetry of the kidneys and bone marrow during therapy and its impact on efficacy and outcome.MethodsThe study group comprised 200 consecutive patients with metastasized somatostatin receptor-positive neuroendocrine tumours progressing on standard therapy or not suitable for other therapeutic options. A treatment cycle consisted of 7.4 GBq 177Lu-DOTA-octreotate with co-infusion of a mixed amino acid solution, and cycles were repeated until the absorbed dose to the kidneys reached 23 Gy or there were other reasons for stopping therapy. The Ki-67 index was ≤2% in 47 patients (23.5%), 3–20% in 121 (60.5%) and >20% in 16 (8%).ResultsIn 123 patients (61.5%) the absorbed dose to the kidneys reached 23 Gy with three to nine cycles during first-line therapy; in no patient was a dose to the bone marrow of 2 Gy reached. The best responses (according to RECIST 1.1) were a complete response (CR) in 1 patient (0.5%), a partial response (PR) in 47 (23.5%), stable disease (SD) in 135 (67.5%) and progressive disease (PD) in 7 (3.5%). Median progression-free survival was 27 months (95% CI 22–30 months) in all patients, 33 months in those in whom the absorbed dose to the kidneys reached 23 Gy and 15 months in those in whom it did not. Median overall survival (OS) was 43 months (95% CI 39–53 months) in all patients, 54 months in those in whom the absorbed dose to the kidneys reached 23 Gy and 25 months in those in whom it did not. Median OS was 60 months in patients with a best response of PR or CR, 42 months in those with SD and 16 months in those with PD. Three patients (1.5%) developed acute leukaemia, 1 patient (0.5%) chronic leukaemia (unconfirmed) and 30 patients (15%) grade 3 or 4 bone marrow toxicity. Eight patients (4%) developed grade 2 kidney toxicity and one patient (0.5%) grade 4 kidney toxicity.ConclusionsDosimetry-based therapy with 177Lu-DOTA-octreotate is feasible. Patients in whom the absorbed dose to the kidneys reached 23 Gy had a longer OS than those in whom it did not. Patients with CR/PR had a longer OS than those with SD. Bone marrow dosimetry did not predict toxicity.

Peptide receptor radionuclide therapy (PRRT) is a promising treatment for patients with neuroendocrine tumors, giving rise to improved survival. Dosimetric calculations in relation to PRRT have been concentrated to normal organ dosimetry in order to limit side effects. However, the relation between the absorbed dose to the tumor and treatment response has so far not been established. Better knowledge in this respect may improve the understanding of treatment effects, allow for improved selection of those patients who are expected to benefit from PRRT, and avoid unnecessary treatments. The aim of the present work was to evaluate the dose-response relationship for pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors treated with PRRT using 177 Lu-DOTATATE. Methods: Tumor-absorbed dose calculations were performed for 24 lesions in 24 patients with metastasized pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors treated with repeated cycles of 177 Lu-DOTATATE at 8-wk intervals. The absorbed dose calculations relied on sequential SPECT/CT imaging at 24, 96, and 168 h after infusion of 177 Lu-DOTATATE. The unit density sphere model from OLINDA was used for absorbed dose calculations. The absorbed doses were corrected for partial-volume effect based on phantom measurements. On the basis of these results, only tumors larger than 2.2 cm in diameter at any time during the treatment were included for analysis. To further decrease the effect of partial-volume effect, a subgroup of tumors (.4.0 cm) was analyzed separately. Tumor response was evaluated by CT using Response Evaluation Criteria In Solid Tumors. Results: Tumor-absorbed doses until best response ranged approximately from 10 to 340 Gy. A 2-parameter sigmoid fit was fitted to the data, and a significant correlation between the absorbed dose and tumor reduction was found, with a Pearson correlation coefficient (R 2 ) of 0.64 for tumors larger than 2.2 cm and 0.91 for the subgroup of tumors larger than 4.0 cm. The largest tumor reduction was 57% after a total absorbed dose of 170 Gy. Conclusion: The results imply a significant correlation between absorbed dose and tumor reduction. However, further studies are necessary to address the large variations in response for similar absorbed doses.

We conclude that SPECT dosimetry based on small VOIs is feasible and more accurate than conventional planar dosimetry, and thus may contribute towards optimising targeted radionuclide therapy.