Multicenter evaluation of single-photon emission computed tomography quantification with third-party reconstruction software

Abstract

Reliable and reproducible quantification is essential in many clinical situations. Previously, single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) has not been considered a quantitative imaging modality, but recent advances in reconstruction algorithm development have made SPECT quantitative. In this study, we investigate the reproducibility of SPECT quantification with phantoms in a multicenter setting using novel third-party reconstruction software. A total of five hospitals and eight scanners (three GE scanners and five Siemens scanners) participated in the study. A Jaszczak phantom without inserts was used to calculate counts to activity concentration conversion factors. The quantitative accuracy was tested using the NEMA-IEC phantom with six spherical inserts (diameters from 10 to 37 mm) filled to an 8 : 1 insert-background concentration ratio. Phantom studies were reconstructed at one central location using HERMES HybridRecon applying corrections for attenuation, collimator-detector response, and scatter. Spherical volumes of interest with the same diameter as the inserts were drawn on the images and recovery coefficients for the spheres were calculated. The coefficient of variation (CoV) of the NEMA-IEC phantom recovery coefficients ranged from ∼19 to 5% depending on the insert diameter so that the lowest CoV was obtained with the largest spheres. The intersite CoV was almost equal to intrasite CoV. In conclusion, quantitative SPECT is reproducible in a multicenter setting with third-party reconstruction software.

Variability in lutetium-177 SPECT quantification between different state-of-the-art SPECT/CT systems

“…Hippeläinen et al compared the results of different ordered subset expectation maximization (OSEM) reconstruction algorithms [21] and concluded that alignment was best when the images were corrected for attenuation, scatter, and detector and collimator response. Various SPECT/CT vendors have responded to the increasing need for SPECT quantification and now commercially offer software packages for quantification of several radionuclides including 177 Lu [22][23][24].…”

Towards standardization of absolute SPECT/CT quantification: a multi-center and multi-vendor phantom study

“…This study is a considerable step towards standardization of absolute SPECT quantification by investigating the quantitative accuracy of different SPECT/CT systems. The quantitative accuracy of individual SPECT-CT systems was assessed earlier for the GE Discovery NM/CT 670 system [5], the Siemens Symbia Intevo system [44] and the Hermes SUV SPECT quantitative reconstruction algorithm [36]. Although an earlier study by Seret et al [32] also compared the quantitative capabilities of four SPECT/CT cameras, our study included the current state-of-the-art quantitative SPECT/CT systems that enable absolute quantification that were not available at that time.…”

“…In a different study [34] in which they compared the same three SPECT/ CT systems, they showed that image resolution is very much dependent on the reconstruction algorithm. In recent years, various SPECT/CT and software vendors have responded to the increasing need for SPECT quantification and now commercially offer software packages for quantification of several radionuclides including 99m Tc, 111 In, 131 I, and 177 Lu [35][36][37][38].…”

Comparison of commercial dosimetric software platforms in patients treated with 177Lu‐DOTATATE for peptide receptor radionuclide therapy

“…NM images generated by HROD had voxel sizes of 4.42 × 4.42 × 4.42 mm 3 . The SPECT standard uptake value (SUV) option 56 was not available at the time of the study.…”