UNASSIGNED: An accurate assessment of tumor viability after first-line treatment is critical for predicting treatment failure in peripheral T-cell lymphomas (PTCLs). 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (18F-FDG) positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) has been adopted as the preferred assessment method in clinical trials, but its impact in clinical practice should be examined. This study aims to determine the prognostic significance of18F-FDG-PET/CT for survival following first-line treatment in PTCL patients.
UNASSIGNED: Retrospective observational study including 175 patients diagnosed with PTCL between 2008 and 2013 in 13 Spanish sites.
UNASSIGNED: Fifty patients were evaluated with18F-FDG-PET/CT following first-line therapy: 58% were18F-FDG-PET/CT-negative and 42% were18F-FDG-PET/CT-positive. Disease progression occurred in 37.9% of18F-FDG-PET/CT-negative patients and in 80.9% of18F-FDG-PET/CT-positive patients (p = 0.0037). Median progression-free survival and overall survival were 67 and 74 months for18F-FDG-PET/CT-negative patients, and 5 (p < 0.0001) and 10 months (p < 0.0001), respectively, in18F-FDG-PET/CT-positive patients. After multivariate analysis, only B symptoms emerged as a negative predictive factor of complete response (RR 7.08; 95% CI 1.60-31.31; p = 0.001).
UNASSIGNED: 18F-FDG-PET/CT identifies high-risk PTCL patients who will have poor prognosis and survival following first-line treatment. However, more research is needed to confirm the best treatment options for PTCL patients.

Metabolic elevation in soft-tissue sarcomas (STS), as documented with 18F-Fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (18F-FDG-PET/CT) has been linked with cell proliferation, higher grade, and lower survivals. However, the recent diagnostic innovations (CINSARC gene-expression signature and tertiary lymphoid structure [TLS]) and therapeutic innovations (immune checkpoint inhibitors [ICIs]) for STS patients underscore the need to re-assess the role of 18F-FDG-PET/CT. Thus, in this correspondence, our objective was to investigate the correlations between STS metabolism as assessed by nuclear imaging, and the immune landscape as estimated by transcriptomics analysis, immunohistochemistry panels, and TLS assessment. Based on a prospective cohort of 85 adult patients with high-grade STS recruited in the NEOSARCOMICS trial (NCT02789384), we identified 3 metabolic groups according to 18F-FDG-PET/CT metrics (metabolic-low [60%], -intermediate [15.3%] and high [24.7%]). We found that T-cells CD8 pathway was significantly enriched in metabolic-high STS. Conversely, several pathways involved in antitumor immune response, cell differentiation and cell cycle, were downregulated in extreme metabolic-low STS. Next, multiplex immunofluorescence showed that densities of CD8+, CD14+, CD45+, CD68+, and c-MAF cells were significantly higher in the metabolic-high group compared to the metabolic-low group. Lastly, no association was found between metabolic group and TLS status. Overall, these results suggest that (i) rapidly proliferating and metabolically active STS can instigate a more robust immune response, thereby attracting immune cells such as T cells and macrophages, and (ii) metabolic activity and TLS could independently influence immune responses.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the prognostic value of radiomics features extracted from 18F-FDG-PET/CT images and integrated with clinical characteristics and conventional PET/CT metrics in newly diagnosed multiple myeloma (NDMM) patients.
METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed baseline clinical information and 18F-FDG-PET/CT imaging data of MM patients with 18F-FDG-PET/CT. Multivariate Cox regression models involving different combinations were constructed, and stepwise regression was performed: (1) radiomics features of PET/CT alone (Rad Model); (2) Using clinical data (including clinical/laboratory parameters and conventional PET/CT metrics) only (Cli Model); (3) Combination radiomics features and clinical data (Cli-Rad Model). Model performance was evaluated by C-index and Net Reclassification Index (NRI).
RESULTS: Ninety-eight patients with NDMM who underwent 18F-FDG-PET/CT between 2014 and 2019 were included in this study. Combining radiomics features from PET/CT with clinical data showed higher prognostic performance than models with radiomics features or clinical data alone (C-index 0.790 vs. 0.675 vs. 0.736 in training cohort; 0.698 vs. 0.651 vs. 0.563 in validation cohort; AUC 0.761, sensitivity 56.7%, specificity 85.7%, p < 0.05 in training cohort and AUC 0.650, sensitivity 80.0%, specificity78.6%, p < 0.05 in validation cohort) When clinical data was combined with radiomics, an increase in the performance of the model was observed (NRI > 0).
CONCLUSIONS: Radiomics features extracted from the PET and CT components of baseline 18F-FDG-PET/CT images may become an effective complement to provide prognostic information; therefore, radiomics features combined with clinical characteristic may provide clinical value for MM prognosis prediction.

Initial staging of rhabdomyosarcoma is crucial for prognosis and to tailor the treatment. The standard radiology workup (SRW) includes magnetic resonance imaging, chest computed tomography (CT) and bone scintigraphy, but 18 Fluorine-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) positron emission tomography (PET)/computed tomography (CT) (18F-FDG-PET/CT (PET-CT)) use is increasing. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of PET-CT in the initial staging of patients with metastatic rhabdomyosarcoma enrolled in the European protocol MTS2008.
Two authors retrospectively reviewed the SRW and PET-CT reports comparing the number and sites of metastases detected. For bone marrow involvement, PET-CT and bone marrow aspirates/biopsies were compared.
Among 263 metastatic patients enrolled from October 2008 to December 2016, 121 had PET-CT performed at diagnosis, and for 118 of 121 patients, both PET-CT and radiological reports were available for review. PET-CT showed higher sensitivity than SRW in the ability to detect locoregional (96.2% versus 78.5%, P value = 0.0013) and distant lymph node involvement (94.8% versus 79.3%, P value = 0.0242), but sensitivity was lower for intrathoracic sites (lung 79.6% versus 100%, P value = 0.0025). For bone metastasis, PET-CT was more sensitive than bone scintigraphy (96.4% versus 67.9%, P value = 0.0116). The PET-CT sensitivity and specificity to detect marrow involvement were 91.8% and 93.8%, respectively. The mean number of metastatic sites was 1.94 (range 0-5) with PET-CT and 1.72 (range 0-5) with SRW. In four patients (3.4%), PET-CT changed the staging from localised to metastatic disease.
PET can identify metastatic disease not evident on SRW in a small number of patients. This is because of its higher ability to recognise lymph node and bone involvement. Chest CT remains essential to detect lesions in intrathoracic sites, which can be performed in a one stop-shot routine examination or on a dedicated chest CT scan. PET-CT could replace bone scintigraphy to study bone involvement.

This retrospective study examined the role of 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography/computed tomography (18F-FDG-PET/CT) in stage-related therapy of follicular lymphomas (FL). Twelve patients each in stages I and II, 13 in stage III and 11 in stage IV were treated in the Department of Radiation Oncology, University Hospital of Muenster, Germany from 2004 to 2016. Radiotherapy (RT), as well as additional chemoimmunotherapy were analyzed with a median follow-up of 87.6 months. Ultrasound (US), CT and 18F-FDG-PET/CT were used to determine progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS) and lymphoma-specific survival (LSS) over 5- and 10- years. 23 of 24 patients with stage I/II (95.8%) had complete remissions (CR) and 17 of 24 patients with stages III/IV FL showed CR (70.8%). 5- and 10-year PFS in stages I/II was 90.0%/78.1% vs. 44.3%/28.5% in stages III/IV. 5- and 10-year OS rates in stages I/II was 100%/93.3% vs. 53.7%/48.4% in stages III/IV. 5- and 10-year LSS of stages I/II was 100%/93.8% vs. 69.2%/62.3% in stages III/IV. FL of stages I/II, staged by 18F-FDG-PET/CT, revealed better survival rates and lower risk of recurrence compared to studies without PET/CT-staging. Especially, patients with PET/CT proven stage I disease showed significantly better survival and lower relapses rates after RT.

8-28% of patients infected with COVID-19 have evidence of cardiac injury, and this is associated with an adverse prognosis. The cardiovascular mechanisms of injury are poorly understood and speculative. We aim to use multimodality cardiac imaging including cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging, computed tomography coronary angiography (CTCA) and positron emission tomography with 2-deoxy-2-[fluorine-18]fluoro-D-glucose integrated with computed tomography (18F-FDG-PET/CT) to identify the cardiac pathophysiological mechanisms related to COVID-19 infections.
This is a single-centre exploratory observational study aiming to recruit 50 patients with COVID-19 infection who will undergo cardiac biomarker sampling. Of these, 30 patients will undergo combined CTCA and 18F-FDG-PET/CT, followed by CMR. Prevalence of obstructive and non-obstructive atherosclerotic coronary disease will be assessed using CTCA. CMR will be used to identify and characterise myocardial disease including presence of cardiac dysfunction, myocardial fibrosis, myocardial oedema and myocardial infarction. 18F-FDG-PET/CT will identify vascular and cardiac inflammation. Primary endpoint will be the presence of cardiovascular pathology and the association with troponin levels.
The results of the study will identify the presence and modality of cardiac injury associated COVID-19 infection, and the utility of multi-modality imaging in diagnosing such injury. This will further inform clinical decision making during the pandemic.
This study has been retrospectively registered at the ISRCTN registry (ID ISRCTN12154994) on 14th August 2020. Accessible at https://www.isrctn.com/ISRCTN12154994.

Introduction: Large-vessel vasculitis has non-specific clinical symptoms, which can delay the diagnosis. Early recognition and treatment of the disease can help to avoid late complications. 18 F-FDG-PET can detect the inflammation of the vessel wall in the early stage of the disease with high sensitivity. CT is used to localize vasculitis. Aim: To examine the performance of 18F-FDG-PET/CT in patients with suspected large-vessel vasculitis, during relapse and remission, focusing on disease activity and extent. Method: 43 patients were evaluated. They were classified according to the clinical questions: steroid-naive suspected vasculitis, suspected vasculitis on steroid treatment, patients with relapse and in remission. We examined 10 cancer patients in control. We carried out visual and quantitative analysis of the 18F-FDG uptake of vessel walls. During quantitative evaluation, we determined standardised uptake values (SUVmax) of vessel wall segments compared to liver. Results: We found active disease in 5 patients examined for primary diagnosis, moreover, in 5 patients with relapse. The disease involved 3 or more vessel segments in fifty percent of the active cases. In the visually active group, the SUVmax was significantly lower in patients on steroid treatment than in steroid-naive cases (1.17 ± 0.11 vs. 1.43 ± 0.29; p = 0.005). We confirmed remission in 2 cases after therapy. In the inactive group, we found other types of inflammatory disorders in 8 cases. Conclusion: 18F-FDG-PET/CT is an effective diagnostic tool for large-vessel vasculitis, and can be used to determine the activity and extent of the disease. Steroid treatment influences the 18F-FDG-uptake of vessel wall. Orv Hetil. 2020; 161(20): 829-838.
Bevezetés: A nagyérvasculitisek nem specifikus klinikai tüneteket okoznak, ami a diagnózist nagyban nehezíti. A betegség korai felismerése és kezelése a későbbi szövődmények elkerülése érdekében fontos. A 18F-FDG-PET az érfalon belüli gyulladást a betegség korai stádiumában is nagy érzékenységgel mutatja ki. A CT a nagyérvasculitis pontos lokalizációjában van segítségünkre. Célkitűzés: A 18F-FDG-PET/CT teljesítőképességének tisztázása a betegség aktivitásának és kiterjedésének megítélésében: klinikailag nagyérvasculitis iránydiagnózisával vizsgált betegekben és relapsus során, valamint a terápiára létrejövő remissio megállapításában. Módszer: A vizsgálatban 43 beteg vett részt. A betegeket a klinikai kérdés alapján csoportosítottuk: primer diagnózis igazolása szteroidnaiv és szteroiddal kezelt betegekben, relapsus, illetve remissio kimutatása. Kontrollként 10, gyulladásos tünetektől mentes tumoros beteget vizsgáltunk meg. Az erek radiofarmakon-felvételének mértékét vizuálisan és kvantitatívan értékeltük. A kvantitatív értékelés során az érszegmentumokban a májhoz viszonyított érfal maximális standard 18F-FDG-felvételi értékét (SUVmax) határoztuk meg. Eredmények: A primer diagnózis céljából végzett 30 vizsgálatból 5 esetben 18F-FDG-aktív nagyérvasculitist mutattunk ki, további 13 vizsgálatból 5 betegben pedig relapsust igazoltunk. A vizuálisan aktív betegek 50%-ában 3 vagy annál több aktív érszegmentumot találtunk. A vizuálisan aktív betegcsoportban szteroid hatására az érfal SUVmax-értéke szignifikánsan alacsonyabb volt a szteroidnaiv betegekhez képest (1,17 ± 0,11 vs. 1,43 ± 0,29; p = 0,005). Két 18F-FDG-aktív nagyér-vasculitises betegben kontrollvizsgálattal remissiót állapítottunk meg. A primer diagnózis céljából vizsgált esetek közül 8-ban egyéb, a nagyérvasculitistől független gyulladásos kórképet mutattunk ki. Következtetés: A 18F-FDG-PET/CT hatékonyan alkalmazható az aktív nagyérvasculitisek diagnosztizálásában. A metabolikus változás nagy érzékenységű megjelenítése mellett az érintett erek pontos lokalizációját is lehetővé teszi. A szteroidterápia befolyásolja az érfalak 18F-FDG-felvételét. Orv Hetil. 2020; 161(20): 829–838.

This prospective study aimed to evaluate whether 18F-FDG-PET/CT performed before, during and after neoadjuvant chemo-radiotherapy (CRT) could predict histopathological response in patients with locally advanced cervical cancer (LACC) treated with CRT followed by radical surgery.
Between October 2010 and June 2014, 88 patients with LACC were enrolled. For each patient, three 18F-FDG-PET/CT scans (baseline, early and final) were acquired and evaluated by qualitative and quantitative analysis. Maximum standardized uptake value (SUVmax), SUVmean, metabolic tumor volume (MTV) and total lesion glycolysis (TLG) were measured as absolute values and their percentage variation (delta) (early vs. baseline and final vs. baseline). The role of 18F-FDG-PET/CT in predicting lymph node (LN) residual disease was evaluated by qualitative analysis only. Histopathology was the reference standard.
At histopathology, 40 patients had complete response (CR, pR0), 48 had partial response (PR: 21 microscopic [pR1] and 27 macroscopic [pR2]). At baseline, SUVmax and SUVmean were significantly higher in pR0 than in pR1-pR2 patients. At early evaluation, MTV and TLG were significantly higher in pR1-pR2 than in pR0 patients. At final evaluation, SUVmax, SUVmean and TLG were significantly higher in pR1-pR2 than in pR0 patients. Delta SUV parameters and delta TLG were significantly lower in PR group both during and after CRT. Delta MTV was significantly lower in patients with PR in the early phase only. In receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis, baseline SUVmean, early delta TLG, and final delta SUVmax better discriminated PR, providing 83.3%, 67.6% and 85% positive predictive value (PPV) and 60.3%, 90% and 70.8% negative predictive value (NPV), respectively. For LN assessment, high NPV was observed at early and final 18F-FDG-PET/CT (93.5% and 92.3%, respectively).
In LACC patients treated with CRT followed by surgery, early variations in metabolic parameters effectively discriminate histopathological PR of the primary tumor, suggesting the potential role of 18F-FDG-PET/CT in early personalized treatment. The high NPV of early and final PET/CT could enable \"tailored surgery\" by avoiding lymphadenectomy in selected patients.

The present study, discussed a rare case of a 50-year-old woman who was treated for malignant melanoma and underwent 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) positron emission tomography (PET)/computed tomography (CT) examination for evaluation of disease. 18F-FDG-PET/CT examination was performed from the top of the head down to the knee using a Gemini TF PET/CT scanner 60 min following intravenous injection of radiotracer with mean activity of 364±75 MBq. Previous performed laboratory test and clinical examination was irrelevant. By abdominal ultrasound no abnormalities in abdominal organs beside the liver cyst were found. The 18F-FDG PET/CT exam showed an increased glucose metabolism in the anterior pole of the spleen, which was considered as melanoma metastasis. Splenectomy was performed and histopathology examination tuberculous lesion in the spleen was revealed. Histopathology examination showed epithelioid granuloma and in correlation with the patient\'s history allowed to establish tuberculous-like lesions in the spleen. In the present study, authors used 18F-FDG PET/CT examination to detect the melanoma metastasis of a 50-year-old woman, and found that abnormal focal accumulation of radiotracer with limited cancer specificity in PET/CT examination in cancer patients should not be unambiguously taken as a metastatic lesion.

OBJECTIVE: This retrospective study was done to examine whether the heterogeneity in primary tumor F-18-fluorodeoxyglucose (18F-FDG) and 18F-3\'-fluoro-3\'-deoxythymidine (18F-FLT) distribution can predict prognosis of patients with colorectal cancer who received surgery.
METHODS: The enrolled 32 patients with colorectal cancer underwent both 18F-FDG- and 18F-FLT-PET/CT studies before surgery. Clinicopathological factors, stage, SUVmax, SUVmean, metabolic tumor volume (SUV ≥ 2.5), total lesion glycolysis, total lesion proliferation and seven texture heterogeneity parameters (coefficient of variation, local parameters: entropy, homogeneity, and dissimilarity; and regional parameters: intensity variability [IV], size-zone variability [SZV], and zone percentage [ZP]) were obtained. Progression free survival (PFS) was calculated by the Kaplan-Meier method. Prognostic significance was assessed by Cox proportional hazards analysis.
RESULTS: Eight patients had eventually come to progression, and 24 patients were alive without progression during clinical follow-up [mean follow-up PFS; 55.9 months (range, 1-72)]. High stage (p = 0.004), high 18F-FDG-IV (p = 0.015), high 18F-FDG-SZV (p = 0.013) and high 18F-FLT-entropy (p = 0.015) were significant in predicting poor 5-year PFS. Other parameters did not predict the disease outcome. At bivariate analysis, disease event hazards ratios for 18F-FDG-IV and 18F-FDG-SZV remained significant when adjusted for stage and 18F-FLT-entropy (18F-FDG-IV; p = 0.004 [adjusted for stage], 0.007 [adjusted for 18F-FLT-entropy]; 18F-FDG-SZV; p = 0.028 [adjusted for stage], 0.040 [adjusted for 18F-FLT-entropy]).
CONCLUSIONS: 18F-FDG PET heterogeneity parameters, IV and SZV, have a potential to be strong prognostic factors to predict PFS of patients with surgically resected colorectal cancer and are more useful than 18F-FLT-PET/CT heterogeneity parameters.