Positron emission tomography imaging for gynecologic malignancy

Abstract

The role of PET or PET/computed tomography has evolved from a diagnostic tool into a potential indicator of response to treatment and prognosis. Evaluating this tool by clinical impact is an attractive end point.

The serum assay of tumour markers in the prognostic evaluation, treatment monitoring and follow-up of patients with cervical cancer: A review of the literature

“…According to Esajas et al [50], serial SCC measurements during the follow-up do not improve the cure rate of patients who will ultimately develop a recurrence. However, it has been recently reported that the performance of a PET in patients with asymptomatic SCC elevation can sometimes allow an earlier diagnosis of relapse, with positive effects on patient survival [59,60,62]. PET imaging appears to have the potential to improve both the clinical outcome and the quality of life of patients with recurrent cervical cancer [60].…”

“…Positron emission tomography with 18-fluorodeoxyglucose [FDG-PET] has been employed in patients treated for squamous cell cervical cancer who had asymptomatically elevated SCC levels but negative or equivocal findings at other imaging modalities [59][60][61][62]. Chang et al [60] performed PET in 27 patients who experienced a complete response to primary or salvage therapy, who presented no evidence of disease by conventional methods and who had serum SCC > 2.0 ng/ml in two consecutive samples.…”

PET and PET/CT of the Neck Lymph Nodes Improves Risk Prediction in Patients with Squamous Cell Carcinoma of the Oral Cavity

“…18 F-FDG PET has prognostic value in OSCC patients (13,19,20). Notably, 18 F-FDG uptake in the primary tumor predicts overall survival in different cancers (21)(22)(23)(24)(25)(26), including OSCC (27). However, little has been reported about the prognostic significance of PET findings in the neck lymph nodes in patients with OSCC.…”

Role of PET/CT in the detection of liver metastases from colorectal cancer

“…Numerous studies have shown that rapidly growing neoplastic tissue utilises glucose as a substrate for energy needs, thus producing an increased uptake of 18 F-FDG [15]. Even though the tracer is not tumour-cell specific, 18 F-FDG is widely used in the study of many malignant diseases [16,17], as it is considered better than conventional imaging in identifying primary or secondary tumours.…”

“…Indeed, studies have shown that the reduction in the number of malignant cells fini energetici, determinando un aumento dell'uptake del 18 F-FDG [15]. Sebbene tale tracciante non sia specifico della cellula tumorale, la 18 F-FDG-PET risulta largamente utilizzata nello studio di molte patologie neoplastiche [16,17] Nel nostro studio, le metodiche mostrano una concordanza con valori di sensibilità, specificità ed accuratezza superiori ai dati della letteratura poiché, la maggior parte degli studi finora effettuati utilizzano la TC senza la somministrazione di MdC organo-iodato, che non permette la visualizzazione di molte metastasi epatiche [17][18][19]. Anche se le localizzazioni secondarie epatiche mostrano una evidente ipercaptazione di 18 Sebbene la PET e la TC risultano, dai dati di questo lavoro, equivalenti nella capacità di identificare localizzazioni secondarie epatiche, appare chiaro che le due metodiche sono tra loro complementari.…”