SNM 1999 June

DETECTION OF MALIGNANT TUMORS WITH WHOLE-BODY PET USING F-18 a-METHYL TYROSINE: COPARISON WITH WHOLE-BODY FDG PET

K. Aoyagi, T. Inoue, N. Oriuchi, S. Alyafei, Z. Yuan, H. Suzuki, Y. Tomaru, K. Tomiyoshi, J. Aoki, K. Endo.

Department of Nuclear Medicine, Gunma University School of Medicine, Japan.

Objective: To assess the diagnostic potential of whole-body PET using fluorine-18 a-methyl tyrosine (FMT) by comparing with flurine-18-fluorodeoxy glucose (FDG). Methods: Nineteen patients with known or suspected malignant tumors and a healthy volunteer underwent whole-body PET with FMT and FDG. Diagnostic performance on a lesion-by-lesion basis (30 malignant tumors and 12 benign lesions) of the whole-body FMT PET was compared with that of the whole-body FDG PET. Results: Sensitivity of FMT PET (70%) was inferior to that of FDG PET (90%). However, specificity and positive predictive value of FMT PET were superior to those of FDG PET (75% vs. 25%, 84% vs. 75%, respectively). The average standardized uptake value (SUV) of FMT in the malignant tumors S.D.: 1.54+/-0.94 vs. 0.75+/-0.29, P<0.005). The average SUV of FDG uptake in the malignant tumors was significantly higher than that of FMT (P<0.0001). Conclusion: These preliminary findings indicate that whole-body FMT PET could be clinically useful in diagnosing malignant tumors. It may be used in patients with suspected malignant tumors who show positive results on whole-body FDG PET.

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