Dear Molecular Imaging Insider,
Topping this edition of the Insider is a British study that confirms PET/CT's high sensitivity and specificity in identifying focal bony disease in patients with Hodgkin's disease. The research further suggests that PET/CT can play an important role in initial staging of the disease.
Based on their findings, researchers from Royal Marsden Hospital in London are recommending that FDG-PET/CT be utilized for all Hodgkin's lymphoma patients to stage their cancer. They also are advising that bone marrow trephine biopsy be used "far more judiciously." Read more about the study by clicking here.
Also in this issue, staff writer Eric Barnes reports on an ongoing study evaluating standardized uptake values (SUVs) in lung cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy and radiation. Preliminary results of the study, presented by Dr. Barry Siegel from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, suggest that SUVs can vary significantly depending on the facility in which they are measured.
Also, read about a study from the Cleveland Clinic in which researchers investigated brain metabolism of patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, or Lou Gehrig's disease). Dr. Roland Talanow detailed his findings on how PET may be useful in distinguishing typical dementia syndromes, such as Alzheimer's disease and frontotemporal dementia, from atypical cortical changes.
Another featured article outlines PET/CT's prowess over CT in detecting additional lesions in 23% of all cancer patients who underwent conventional thoracic CT. Research results come from Dr. Jean-Charles Vinet and his colleagues at the Centre Hospitalier de l'Université de Montréal.
The retrospective study of more than 3,000 patients also concluded that 50% of newly detected lesions were supraclavicular lymph nodes, and that most lesions should have been reported in the initial read, based on radiologic malignancy criteria. Click here to learn more.
In economic news, staff writer Kate Madden Yee reports on a study presented at this month's RSNA meeting that analyzed the growth in procedure volume of nuclear myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI). Dr. David Levin and colleagues at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia found that growth in MPI utilization was far higher among cardiologists than among radiologists. That story is available by clicking here.
At this time of year, we would like to thank all our members for your support of the Molecular Imaging Digital Community during 2008. We look forward to bringing additional timely and relevant research your way in the coming year. Until then, have a joyous holiday season and a healthy and prosperous start to 2009.
