Dear AuntMinnie Member,
Currently, most AI systems for dementia diagnosis have been trained and tested on data from the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative. However, the accuracy of these algorithms often diminishes when they are applied to clinical datasets, according to researchers.
In this edition of the Molecular Imaging Insider, we’ve highlighted a study that appears to overcome this limitation, with a U.K. team developing AI models based on real-world clinical brain perfusion SPECT imaging. Click here for more details.
In another Alzheimer’s disease study we highlighted, research suggests that brain pathology associated with the disease differs based on sex. A group at Columbia University found that cognitively unimpaired women between 60 and 69 years old show less neurodegeneration than men, despite having greater Alzheimer’s disease brain pathology on PET scans.
Aside from brain PET, cardiac PET/CT grabbed a few headlines since our last issue. We reported that the American Society of Nuclear Cardiology is now recommending cardiac PET with myocardial blood flow to evaluate all patients with suspected coronary artery disease. We also highlighted a study that explored how F-18 flurpiridaz PET performs in routine clinical practice. Moreover, researchers at the University of Washington suggest that PET imaging may predict atrial fibrillation in patients based on F-18 FDG radiotracer uptake in the atrial walls.
Aside from these stories, theranostics remains the headline act in our coverage. The following is a sampling of stories we've posted:
F-18 prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA)-1007 PET/CT scans can predict early treatment responses in prostate cancer patients scheduled for actinium-225 (Ac-225) PSMA-I&T, according to a German group.
A newly launched phase-III clinical trial hopes to answer one of the most important questions facing targeted radioligand therapy: How can doctors tailor the treatments to individual patients?
A new lutetium-177 (Lu-177)-based radiopharmaceutical therapy prolonged overall survival in patients with pleural metastases who were previously treated with standard therapies.
In a study published in the Journal of Nuclear Medicine, a team in Denmark says it has laid the groundwork for testing a new theranostic pair in patients with neuroendocrine lung tumors.
Finally, we noted a study by Yale University researchers that compared high-resolution brain scans between a control group and participants with alcohol use disorder. The findings underscore the potential of synaptic restoration as a therapeutic target for AUD, according to the authors.
For more molecular imaging news, be sure to check our Molecular Imaging content area regularly. And as always, if you have molecular imaging topics you'd like us to consider, please contact me.
Will Morton
Associate Editor
AuntMinnie.com