Aung Zaw Win

Normal SUV values measured from NaF18- PET/CT bone scan studies.

Objectives Cancer and metabolic bone diseases can alter the SUV. SUV values have never been measured from healthy skeletons in NaF18-PET/CT bone scans. The primary aim of this study was to measure the SUV values from normal skeletons in NaF18-PET/CT bone scans. Methods A retrospective study was carried out involving NaF18- PET/CT bone scans that were done at our institution between January 2010 to May 2012. Our excluding criteria was patients with abnormal real function and patients with past history of cancer and metabolic bone diseases including but not limited to osteoporosis, osteopenia and Paget’s disease. Eleven studies met all the criteria. Results The average normal SUVmax values from 11 patients were: cervical vertebrae 6.84 (range 4.38–8.64), thoracic vertebrae 7.36 (range 6.99–7.66), lumbar vertebrae 7.27 (range 7.04–7.72), femoral head 2.22 (range 1.1–4.3), humeral head 1.82 (range 1.2–2.9), mid sternum 5.51 (range 2.6–8.1), parietal bone 1.71 (range 1.3–2.4). Conclusion According to our study, various skeletal sites have different normal SUV values. SUV values can be different between the normal bones and bones with tumor or metabolic bone disease. SUV can be used to quantify NaF-18 PET/CT studies. If the SUV values of the normal skeleton are known, they can be used in the characterization of bone lesions and in the assessment of treatment response to bone diseases.

Renal Cell Carcinoma Metastasis to the Gallbladder Detected by FDG-PET/CT

A 62-year-old male presented to the ER with three episodes of diffuse abdominal pain which occurred after eating. He had a history of renal cell carcinoma (RCC), prostate cancer and bladder cancer. FDG-PET/CT scan showed a hypermetabolic soft tissue density within the fundus of the gallbladder. The patient underwent laparoscopic cholecystectomy and surgical pathology revealed clear cell type RCC. This is the first report that features PET/CT imaging to detect RCC metastasis to the gallbladder. Lesions within the gall bladder and their clinical manifestations can be non-specific and PET/CT can help characterize them. RCC metastasis to the gallbladder is very rare but it should be included in the differential diagnosis, especially in patients with a history of RCC.

Clinical Effectiveness of 18 F-Fluorodeoxyglucose Positron Emission Tomography/Computed Tomography in Management of Renal Cell Carcinoma: A Single Institution Experience

Positron emission tomography (PET) is currently the most advanced technique of metabolic imaging available for tumor diagnosis and follow-up. The aim of this study was to examine the versatility and accuracy of fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) PET/computed tomography (CT) in the metastasis detection of renal cell carcinoma (RCC). We also compared our findings to other similar studies from the literature. This is the biggest study so far to examine the sensitivity and specificity of FDG PET/CT in the management of RCC. A retrospective review was carried out on all the FDG PET/CT studies done from January 1999 to January 2014 at our institution. Biopsy results were considered the gold standard. For our patients (n = 315) with biopsy results, FDG PET/CT studies exhibited 100% sensitivity, 100% specificity. Our results were better than results achieved by other studies. The use of FDG PET/CT in restaging and metastasis detection of RCC has many advantages, in addition to high accuracy. This imaging technique has great potential in influencing treatment decisions. We recommend the incorporation of FDG PET/CT in routine standard protocols for RCC.

Factors Affecting Uptake of NaF-18 by the Normal Skeleton

Background The primary aim of this study was to examine if factors such as renal function, height, weight and age could affect the uptake of sodium fluoride-18 (NaF-18) by the normal bone. This is the first study to examine the possible factors that can influence NaF-18 uptake in the normal bone. Methods A retrospective study was done on NaF-18 PET/CT bone scans from January 2010 to May 2012 at our institution. All NaF-18 PET/CT studies used the same clinical protocol. Our excluding criteria were patients with abnormal renal function and patients with past history of cancer and metabolic bone diseases. Spearman’s correlation was used to analyze the data. Results From our study (n = 11 patients), no correlation was found between SUVmax and serum creatinine and between SUVmax and age. However, significant correlations were found between SUVmax and height (cm) and between SUVmax and weight (kg) for thoracic 5, 7, 12 and lumbar 2 vertebral levels. Conclusion Based on our findings, SUVmax values in NaF-18 PET/CT bone scans can vary depending on the patient’s height, weight and bone region. This information can be helpful in diagnosing and monitoring bone pathologies and can help explain the clinical findings.

Real-time FDG PET/CT-guided bone biopsy in a patient with two primary malignancies

Solid dysphagia in an elderly man with gastroesophageal reflux disease is suspicious for esophageal cancer [1]. Our patient was an 83-year-old Asian American male with Barrett’s esophagus and solid dysphagia. He also had prostate cancer and a recently determined high prostate-specific antigen raised the concern for metastasis. The common metastatic sites for esophageal cancer are the liver and lungs [1]. FDG can accumulate in 92% to 100% of esophageal cancers [1]. This is the first report of the intraprocedural real-time use of PET/CT in the biopsy of bone metastasis from esophageal cancer. FDG PET/CT biopsy has been utilized for soft-tissue tumors and mucormycosis [2, 3]. It is feasible and may optimize the diagnostic yield of image-guided interventions [4]. Bone biopsy was performed guided by limited real-time PET/CTwith the administration of 5 mCi FDG. The CT scan showed the pelvic bone with no abnormalities (a). The FDG PET scan showed focal metabolic activity in the right iliac bone (b). Hybrid PET/CT guided the tip of the needle to the exact location of the hypermetabolic bone lesion (c). The pathology report revealed metastatic esophageal adenocarcinoma with signet ring features. Metabolic information provided by FDG PET/CT allows visualization of a metabolically active mass while targeting the tumor during biopsy.

A Patient with Psoriatic Arthritis Imaged with FDG-PET/CT Demonstrated an Unusual Imaging Pattern with Muscle and Fascia Involvement: A Case Report

We describe the case of a patient with known history of psoriasis that presented with 1 year of unexplained fever, muscle weakness and marked weight loss, suspicious for B symptoms of a malignant origin. [18F]-Fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography-computed tomography (FDG-PET/CT) scans demonstrated an unusual serpiginous pattern of uptake in the fascia and muscles as well as lymph node activity. Multiple histological samples, including a final PET-probe guided lymph node surgical resection, excluded malignancy and confirmed the diagnosis of reactive inflammatory changes, with a plausible diagnosis of autoimmune lymphoproliferative syndrome with associated lymphadenitis, fasciitis and myositis, possibly mediated by tumor necrosis factor (TNF) inhibitor. To our knowledge, there is no evidence of a previously reported FDG uptake pattern of fascia and muscle involvement in psoriatic arthritis.

Initial Experience of Utilizing Real-Time Intra-Procedural PET/CT Biopsy.

Objectives: Nonreal-time Positron Emission Tomography/Computed Tomography (PET/CT) biopsies that use the image co-registration of a prior PET with an intra-procedural CT have been reported. The aim of this study was to report the initial experience of performing real-time intra-procedural PET/CT-guided biopsies. Materials and Methods: All patients (n = 4) had a prior PET/CT examination of the concerning lesion and no significant CT correlate. On the day of the biopsy, 5 mCi of 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) or NaF18 was intravenously injected. After 60 min of biodistribution of the molecular probe, PET/CT images were obtained in a limited one bed position over the region of the concerning lesion to be biopsied. Results: One patient had a mesenteric mass and the other three had bone lesions, one located in the rib and two in the iliac bone. The pathology report revealed that two lesions (50%) were malignant and two lesions (50%) were benign. The results of the biopsy changed management in all cases. There was 0% complication rate. Conclusions: No additional software or hardware is required to perform real-time intra-procedural PET/CT-guided biopsies. It can optimize the yield, especially in cases where there are no anatomical abnormalities. Real-time intra-procedural PET/CT biopsy may have benefits over conventional biopsy techniques in terms of accuracy.

High prevalence of malnutrition among elderly veterans in home based primary care

IntroductionElderly Veterans enrolled in VA Home Based Primary Care (HBPC) programs suffer from many diseases including malnutrition. Nutrition screening tools exist in the VA system but they are inconsistently utilized across ambulatory care programs and are neither research validated nor comparable with non-VA populations. The Mini-Nutritional Assessment short-form (MNA-SF) has been validated in international studies in a variety of settings. The primary aim of this study was to find the prevalence of malnutrition among Veterans enrolled in HBPC programs. The secondary objective was to determine the feasibility of adopting a validated nutrition screening tool (Mini-Nutritional Assessment short-form (MNA-SF)).Methods2252 veterans age 65 and older from 18 HBPC programs from across the country participated in the study. The study period was between April and September 2012. WinPepi (version 11.25) was used for descriptive analysis.ResultsWe found that the prevalence of malnutrition was 15% (344/2252) and the prevalence of at risk for malnutrition was 40.3% (909/2252).DiscussionThe MNA-SF is an efficient nutrition screening tool and it can be successfully used for the elderly veterans. The prevalence of malnutrition among veterans was high compared to the community dwelling U.S. civilian elderly population. By preventing and treating malnutrition, health care systems should be able to reduce overall health care costs.

Non-traumatic radiation-induced avascular necrosis of the femoral neck

Femoral head avascular necrosis (AVN) is bone destruction due to subchondral oxygen deficiency and necrosis.1 Our patient is a 63-year-old man with Gleason score 5+4 prostate cancer. He received external beam radiation therapy (7200 cGy) along with combined androgen blockade therapy of lupon/casodex. The patient was …

A Case of Metastatic Rectal Squamous Cell Carcinoma Initially Diagnosed as Lung Cancer

Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the rectum is extremely rare with a reported incidence of only 0.025-0.1% of all colorectal tumors. The patient was a 68-year-old man who presented with fatigue, dry cough, shortness of breath, and unintentional weight loss. A chest CT revealed a left suprahilar mass suspected to be lung cancer and an initial diagnosis of primary lung cancer was made. However, fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography and computed tomography (FDG-PET/CT) exam revealed an intensely hypermetabolic rectal mass which turned out to be rectal squamous cell carcinoma. This is the first report that shows FDG-PET/CT images of rectal squamous cell carcinoma metastasis to the skin, muscle, bone, and lung. Use of PET/CT in the initial diagnosis of non-resectable rectal cancers may avoid unnecessary surgery.