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SPECT-CT Modality for Imaging of Medullary Thyroid Cancer (MTC)
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Neuroendocrine tumors (NETs) of the thorax including bronchial and thymic tumors belong to foregut NETs. Limited loco-regional thoracic NETs can be resected with surgery, but in extensive metastatic disease the treatment is mainly palliative. A high incidence and density of somatostatin receptors (SSTR2, SSTR3, and SSTR5) are found in thoracic NETs. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the role of SPECT-CT somatostatin receptor scintigraphy (SRS) with 99mTc-Tektrotyd for imaging, staging and follow up of patients with bronchial and thymic neuroendocrine tumors. Forty-one patients with thoracic tumors with neuroendocrine differentiation were studied. Sixty-eight examinations including SPECT-CT studies of the neck and chest and/or abdomen and pelvis were carried out 2-4 hrs. post i.v. administration of average 740 MBq activity dose of 99mTc-EDDA/HYNIC-TOC (Tektrotyd, Polatom). In all 41 investigated patients we obtained 81.25% (13/16), 88% (22/25) and 85.36% (35/41) of sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of this diagnostic approach, respectively. Somatostatin-receptor scintigraphy correctly identified all primary NETs located in the lungs and thymus. SPECT-CT studies with 99mTc-EDDA/HYNIC-TOC resulted in exact pre-surgical and pre- Treatment N/M staging of bronchial and thymic NETs, except 2 cases with multiple hepatic metastases and 1 with massive suprarenal metastasis. It can be concluded that SPECT-CT with 999mTc-EDDA/HYNIC-TOC is a valuable tool for staging and follow-up of patients with thoracic NETs.
Nuclear medicine imaging of endocrine disorders takes advantage of unique cellular properties of endocrine organs and tissues that can be depicted by targeted radiopharmaceuticals. Detailed functional maps of bio-distributions of radiopharmaceutical uptake can be displayed in 3D-tomographic formats, using single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT), that can now be directly combined with simultaneously acquired cross-sectional anatomic maps derived from computed tomography (CT). The integration of function depicted by scintigraphy and anatomy with CT has synergistically improved the efficacy of nuclear medicine imaging across a broad spectrum of clinical applications, that include some of the oldest imaging studies of endocrine dysfunction.
Purpose. Measurement of serum calcitonin is important in the followup of patients with medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC) and reliably reflects the presence of the disease. This is the largest study so far in bibliography investigating the diagnostic accuracy of combined [(18)F]FDG-PET/CT in patients with MTC and elevated calcitonin levels. Methods. Between February 2007 and February 2011, 59 [(18)F]FDG-PET/CT were performed on 51 patients with MTC and elevated calcitonin levels for localization of recurrent disease. Conventional morphologic imaging methods were negative or showed equivocal findings. Results. Among the 59 [(18)F]FDG-PET/CT, 29 were positive (26 had true-positive and 3 false-positive findings) and 30 negative. The overall per-patient sensitivity of [(18)F]FDG-PET/CT was 44.1%. Using as cut-off point the calcitonin value of 1000 pg/ml, in patients with calcitonin exceeding this value, sensitivity raised to 86.7%. The overall sensitivity of [(18)F]FDG-PET/CT was lower (23%) in patients with MEN IIA syndrome. Conclusion. The findings of this paper show that [(18)F]FDG-PET/CT is valuable for the detection of recurrence in patients with highly elevated calcitonin levels, >1000 pg/mL, but in patients with lower calcitonin levels, its contribution is questionable. Also, there is evidence that the sensitivity of [(18)F]FDG-PET/CT is lower in patients with MTC as part of MEN IIA syndrome.
The aim of this study was to define, retrospectively, the utility to perform (99m)Tc-EDDA/HYNIC-Tyr3-octreotide ((99m)Tc-EDDA/HYNIC-TOC) scan in patients with NET. We studied 50 consecutive patients affected by different types of NET and divided in two groups. Group 1: 34 patients with known lesions in which (99m)Tc-EDDA/HYNIC-TOC was performed for staging, characterisation or to choose the appropriate treatment. Group 2: 16 patients suspected of having NET or in follow up after surgery. Patients were injected with 370 MBq of (99m)Tc-EDDA/HYNIC-Tyr3-octreotide and whole-body and SPET images acquired 2-3 hours after injection. Overall, 29 patients (58%) had a positive scan, with a sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of 70.3%, 76.9% and 72%, respectively (78.1%, 50% and 76.5%, in group 1 and 20%, 81.2%, 62.5% in group 2). In patients from group 1 (99m)Tc-HYNIC-TOC scintigraphy showed a concordance of 68% with another imaging procedure and in 9 patients revealed a greater number of lesions. In the second group, false negative results were especially found in patients with medullary thyroid cancer with negative radiological findings and elevated calcitonin. In conclusion, (99m)Tc-EDDA/HYNIC-TOC is highly indicated for in vivo histological characterization of known NET lesions, previously identified by other imaging modalities or biopsy, to plan appropriate therapy especially for patients with inoperable disease. In patients with only biochemical suspicion of NET and in those with negative markers, this scintigraphy does not significantly modify the clinical management.
Context:
Fine-needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) is the gold standard for the differential diagnosis of thyroid nodules but has the limitation of inadequate sampling or indeterminate lesions.
Objective:
We aimed to verify whether search of thyroid cancer-associated protooncogene mutations in cytological samples may improve the diagnostic accuracy of FNAC.
Study design:
One hundred seventy-four consecutive patients undergoing thyroid surgery were submitted to FNAC (on 235 thyroid nodules) that was used for cytology and molecular analysis of BRAF, RAS, RET, TRK, and PPRgamma mutations. At surgery these nodules were sampled to perform the same molecular testing.
Results:
Mutations were found in 67 of 235 (28.5%) cytological samples. Of the 67 mutated samples, 23 (34.3%) were mutated by RAS, 33 (49.3%) by BRAF, and 11 (16.4%) by RET/PTC. In 88.2% of the cases, the mutation was confirmed in tissue sample. The presence of mutations at cytology was associated with cancer 91.1% of the times and follicular adenoma 8.9% of the time. BRAF or RET/PTC mutations were always associated with cancer, whereas RAS mutations were mainly associated with cancer (74%) but also follicular adenoma (26%). The diagnostic performance of molecular analysis was superior to that of traditional cytology, with better sensitivity and specificity, and the combination of the two techniques further contributed to improve the total accuracy (93.2%), compared with molecular analysis (90.2%) or traditional cytology (83.0%).
Conclusions:
Our findings demonstrate that molecular analysis of cytological specimens is feasible and that its results in combination with cytology improves the diagnostic performance of traditional cytology.
As therapeutic options in advanced medullary and non–iodine avid differentiated (nonmedullary) thyroid cancers are limited and associated with significant toxicity, targeting of
somatostatin receptors (SSTRs) for internal radiation therapy provides a promising option.
Theranostics (therapy and diagnosis) using radiolabeled somatostatin analogues has proved
to be a milestone in the management of SSTR-expressing tumors. Peptide receptor radionuclide therapy using 177Lu-labeled or 90Y-labeled somatostatin analogues may have a
significant role in the management of medullary and nonmedullary thyroid cancers in those
patients where PET/CT with 68Ga-labeled somatostatin analogues demonstrates significant
SSTR expression.
An important role is reserved for nuclear imaging techniques in the imaging of neuroendocrine tumors (NETs). Somatostatin receptor scintigraphy (SRS) with (111)In-DTPA-octreotide is currently the most important tracer in the diagnosis, staging and selection for peptide receptor radionuclide therapy (PRRT). In the past decade, different positron-emitting tomography (PET) tracers have been developed. The largest group is the (68)Gallium-labeled somatostatin analogs ((68)Ga-SSA). Several studies have demonstrated their superiority compared to SRS in sensitivity and specificity. Furthermore, patient comfort and effective dose are favorable for (68)Ga-SSA. Other PET targets like β-[(11)C]-5-hydroxy-L-tryptophan ((11)C-5-HTP) and 6-(18)F-L-3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine ((18)F-DOPA) were developed recently. For insulinomas, glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor imaging is a promising new technique. The evaluation of response after PRRT and other therapies is a challenge. Currently, the official follow-up is performed with radiological imaging techniques. The role of nuclear medicine may increase with the newest tracers for PET. In this review, the different nuclear imaging techniques and tracers for the imaging of NETs will be discussed. © 2015 S. Karger AG, Basel.
Two patients diagnosed with metastatic medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC) were referred for peptide receptor radionuclide therapy (PRRT) with Lu-[DOTA,Tyr]octreotate (DOTATATE). Each patient was treated with 4 doses of Lu-DOTATATE given 2 months apart. One patient achieved stable disease for 10 months then chose to pursue surgery, and the other achieved stable disease for 9 months on imaging; however, calcitonin continued to rise. The use of Lu-DOTATATE PRRT therapy in the management of MTC warrants further research.
Thyroid cancer refractory to conventional treatments lacks effective treatment. Targeted therapy is an emerging therapeutic strategy for these cancers, based on preliminary promising results. Tyrosine kinase inhibitors target both specific oncogenic pathways involved in thyroid cancer progression and aspecific mechanisms such as neoangiogenesis. They are generally well tolerated and most adverse events have low-to-moderate severity. Other classes of drugs have been tested, alone or in combination with tyrosine kinase inhibitors, but so far the results have been limited. The aim of this article is to describe the benefits and limitations of innovative drugs that are currently under investigation in patients with refractory thyroid cancer.
Thyroid nodules are common in adults, but only a small fraction of them are malignant. Fine-needle aspiration (FNA) with cytological evaluation is the most reliable tool for cancer diagnosis in thyroid nodules. However, 10-40% of nodules are diagnosed as indeterminate by cytology, making it difficult to optimally manage these patients.
The aim of this study was to establish the feasibility and role of testing for tumor-specific mutations in improving the FNA diagnosis of thyroid nodules.
The prospective study included 470 FNA samples of thyroid nodules from 328 patients. At the time of aspiration, a small portion of the material was collected and tested for BRAF, RAS, RET/PTC, and PAX8/PPARgamma mutations. The mutational status was correlated with cytology and either surgical pathology diagnosis or follow-up (mean, 34 months).
A sufficient amount of nucleic acids were isolated in 98% of samples. Thirty-two mutations were found, including 18 BRAF, eight RAS, five RET/PTC, and one PAX8/PPARgamma. The presence of any mutation was a strong indicator of cancer because 31 (97%) of mutation-positive nodules had a malignant diagnosis after surgery. A combination of cytology and molecular testing showed significant improvement in the diagnostic accuracy and allowed better prediction of malignancy in the nodules with indeterminate cytology.
These results indicate that molecular testing of thyroid nodules for a panel of mutations can be effectively performed in a clinical setting. It enhances the accuracy of FNA cytology and is of particular value for thyroid nodules with indeterminate cytology.
Peptide receptors have been found to represent excellent targets for in vivo cancer diagnosis and therapy. Recent in vitro studies have shown that many cancers can overexpress not only one but several peptide receptors concomitantly. One of the challenges for nuclear medicine in this field in the coming decade will be to take advantage of the co-expression of peptide receptors for multireceptor tumour targeting. In vitro receptor studies can reveal which peptide receptor is overexpressed in which tumour and which receptors are co-expressed in an individual tumour; such knowledge is a prerequisite for successful in vivo development. One group of tumours of particular interest in this respect is the neuroendocrine tumours, which have previously been shown often to express peptide receptors. This review summarises our investigations of the concomitant expression of 13 different peptide receptors, in more than 100 neuroendocrine tumours of the human intestine, pancreas and lung, using in vitro receptor autoradiography with subtype-selective ligands. The incidence and density of the somatostatin receptors sst(1)-sst(5), the VIP receptors VPAC(1) and VPAC(2), the CCK(1) and CCK(2) receptors, the three bombesin receptor subtypes BB(1) (NMB receptor), BB(2) (GRP receptor) and BB(3), and GLP-1 receptors were evaluated. While the presence of VPAC(1) and sst(2) was detected in the majority of these neuroendocrine tumours, the other receptors, more differentially expressed, revealed a characteristic receptor pattern in several tumour types. Ileal carcinoids expressed sst(2) and VPAC(1) receptors in virtually all cases and had CCK(1), CCK(2), sst(1) or sst(5) in approximately half of the cases; they were the only tumours of this series to express NMB receptors. Insulinomas were characterised by a very high incidence of GLP-1, CCK(2) and VPAC(1) receptors, with the GLP-1 receptors expressed in a particularly high density; they expressed sst(2) in two-thirds and sst(1) in approximately half of the cases and lacked CCK(1) and NMB receptors. All gastrinomas had sst(2) and GLP-1 receptors; they expressed GRP receptors in three-quarters of the cases and CCK(1) or VPAC(1) in approximately half of the cases. Most bronchial carcinoids had VPAC(1), while sst(1), sst(2) and CCK(2) were found in two-thirds of the cases and BB(3) in one-third of the cases. These data provide evidence for the vast biological diversity of these neuroendocrine tumours. Moreover, the results represent a basis for starting and/or optimising the in vivo targeting of these tumours by selecting the suitable radiopeptides for tumour diagnosis and/or therapy. Finally, the data strongly encourage concomitant application of several radiopeptides to permit more efficient targeting of these tumours.
SPECT-CT in neuroendocrine tumors
- T Haslerud
Haslerud T (2014) SPECT-CT in neuroendocrine tumors. In: Clinical
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Springer-Verlag Heidelberg, New York, London 87-110.