Aim: to evaluate the utility of (11)C-choline PET/CT in prostate cancer (PC) patients who have demonstrated a biochemical recurrence and a negative bone scintigraphy (BS).
Materials and Methods: 123 consecutive PC patients (mean age 67.6 years; range 54-83) with a biochemical relapse (mean PSA value 3.3ng/mL; range 0.2-25.5) after radical prostatectomy (RP) were included in our retrospective study. Patients underwent a BS that resulted negative and a (11)C-choline PET/CT within 4 months from BS (range: 1 day to 4 months; mean: 2.5 months). Validation of results was established by: (1) a positive biopsy, (2) a positive subsequent BS, CT or MR and (3) a normalization of (11)C-choline uptake after systemic therapy or a progression of the disease.
Results: (11)C-choline PET/CT was positive in 42/123 patients (34.1%). (11)C-choline PET/CT detected lesions in: bone (10 patients), lymph-nodes (20 patients), bone and lymph nodes (7 patients), bone and lung (1 patient), lymph-nodes and lung (1 patient), local relapse (3 patients). Overall, (11)C-choline PET/CT showed a total of 30 unknown bone lesions in 18/123 (14.6%) patients.
Conclusion: (11)C-choline PET/CT showed a better sensitivity than BS in patients with biochemical relapse after RP: (11)C-choline PET/CT detected unknown bone lesions in 18/123 (14.6%) patients.
Written by:
Fuccio C, Castellucci P, Schiavina R, Guidalotti PL, Gavaruzzi G, Montini GC, Nanni C, Marzola MC, Rubello D, Fanti S Are you the author?
Nuclear Medicine Unit, Department of Hematology Oncology and Laboratory Medicine, Azienda Ospedaliero - Universitaria di Bologna Policlinico Sant'Orsola - Malpighi, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
Reference: Eur J Radiol. 2012 Aug;81(8):e893-6
doi: 10.1016/j.ejrad.2012.04.027
PubMed Abstract
PMID: 22621862
