Dear Molecular Imaging Insider,
PET radiotracers designed specifically for detecting prostate cancer relapse in men who have undergone treatment (radical prostatectomies, for instance) may improve detection rates over currently approved tracers. The idea is that since the tracers bind to prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) protein on cancer cells, they are more accurate and thus can improve treatment in these patients.
To that end, a group in France recently tested F-18 PSMA-1007 PET/CT versus standard F-18 fluorocholine (FCH) PET/CT in a phase III trial. The researchers reported promising results, and you can read about the findings in this edition's Insider Exclusive.
PET imaging is also continuing to show its value in women with invasive breast cancer. For instance, we reported on one study that suggested PET/CT surpasses bone scintigraphy for detecting bone metastases and another that showed F-18 FDG-PET/CT is a better predictor of survival than contrast-enhanced CT in these patients.
In addition, PET has been pivotal in Alzheimer's disease research. In one study, a group led by researchers at Harvard Medical School analyzed tau PET scans and asked, "Are Alzheimer's disease risk factors sex-specific?"
Other stories we wrote on Alzheimer's disease included the following:
- If the monoclonal antibody lecanemab receives approval for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease in Europe, get ready for an increase in demand for PET imaging, said the European Association for Nuclear Medicine (EANM).
- A computer model derived from amyloid PET scans appears to be able to predict how early Alzheimer's disease will progress, according to a group in Beijing, China.
- A group in Sweden reported that lab tests for plasma tau protein could be used as a complement to PET imaging for selecting clinical trial participants to test new treatments.
In SPECT imaging research -- particularly studies using hybrid SPECT/CT techniques -- a group in Bogota, Columbia, reported that the approach is effective for evaluating noninfected painful knees in patients who have undergone knee arthroplasty; in another study, a group at the Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates found SPECT/CT offers significant advantages over SPECT alone for imaging cardiac amyloidosis.
Finally, we noted that the Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging and the EANM released a new practice guideline for somatostatin receptor PET imaging of patients with neuroendocrine tumors.
That's all for now. Be sure to check back regularly for more news in your Molecular Imaging Community!
