A Guide to Clinical PET in Oncology: Improving Clinical Management of Cancer Patients
Positron emission tomography (PET) has an approximately 50 year-history. It was developed as a tool for medical science to quantitatively measure metabolic rates of bio-substances in vivo and in particular the number of receptors in neuroscience. Until the late 1990s PET was, in most cases, a research-oriented activity.
In 2001, Positron Emission Tomography/X-ray Computed Tomography (PET/CT) hybrid imaging systems became commercially available. An era of clinical PET then emerged, in which PET images were utilized for clinical practice in the treatment and diagnosis of cancer patients.
This IAEA-TECDOC presents an overview of clinical PET for cancer patients and a relevant source of information on clinical PET in oncology for nuclear medicine physicians, radiologists and clinical practitioners. Possible ideas for cost effectiveness of clinical PET in oncology are mentioned. The information is also intended to be useful in decision making to improve clinical management of cancer patients when allocating resources dedicated to the health care system. This is a critical issue that is important for the development of both clinical oncology and nuclear medicine in IAEA member states.
Contents
- 1. OVERVIEW OF PET TECHNOLOGY
- 2. MODELS OF CLINICAL PET FACILITIES
- 3. ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF PET COMPARED TO OTHER DIAGNOSTIC IMAGING MODALITIES
- 4. PET APPLICATIONS IN ONCOLOGY
- 4.1. 18F-FDG-PET for evaluating mass lesions
- 4.2. 18F-FDG-PET for cancer detection
- 4.3. 18F-FDG-PET for staging of cancer
- 4.4. 18F-FDG-PET for treatment planning
- 4.5. 18F-FDG-PET for therapeutic monitoring
- 4.6. 18F-FDG-PET for restaging
- 4.7. Use of 18F-FDG-PET as a biomarker
- 4.8. Alternative tracers for cancer evaluation
- 4.9. Conclusion
- 5. USE OF TRACERS OTHER THAN 18F-FDG IN ONCOLOGY
- 6. PRINCIPLES OF COST-BENEFIT ANALYSIS AS APPLIED TO PET/CT
- BIBLIOGRAPHY
- CONTRIBUTORS TO DRAFTING AND REVIEW
