American Journal of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging

Breast cancer (BrCa) ranks as the most prevalent malignant neoplasm affecting women worldwide. The expression of programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) in BrCa has recently emerged as a biomarker for immunotherapy response, but traditional immunohistochemistry (IHC)-based methods are hindered by spatial and temporal heterogeneity. Noninvasive and quantitative PD-L1 imaging using appropriate radiotracers can serve to determine PD-L1 expression in tumors. This study aims to demonstrate the viability of PET imaging with 64 Cu-labeled Durvalumab (abbreviated as Durva) to assess PD-L1 expression using a murine xenograft model of breast cancer...

Several therapeutics and biomarkers that target Alzheimer's disease (AD) are under development. Our clinical positron emission tomography (PET) research programs are interested in six radiopharmaceuticals to image patients with AD and related dementias, specifically [11 C]UCB-J and [18 F]SynVesT-1 for synaptic vesicle glycoprotein 2A as a marker of synaptic density, two vesicular acetylcholine transporter PET radiotracers: [18 F]FEOBV and [18 F]VAT, as well as the transmembrane AMPA receptor regulatory protein (TARP)-γ8 tracer, [18 F]JNJ-64511070, and the muscarinic acetylcholine receptor (mAChR) M4 tracer [11 C]MK-6884...

Tumors are often with complex and heterogeneous biological processes, such as glycometabolism and fibrosis, which are the main biochemical pathways that determine therapeutic effects. Specifically, this study aims to assess the diagnosing performance of 18 F-FDG and 68 Ga-FAPI-04 PET for different stages of progressive bone metastases with PSMA-negative pathology. Bone metastatic mouse model of prostate cancer was constructed via intra-bone injection of PSMA-negative prostate cancer PC3 cells. Cellular uptakes of 18 F-FDG and 68 Ga-FAPI-04 were separately performed on PC3, NIH-3T3 (FAP-positive) and a mixture...

Because carbon-11 (11 C) radiotracers cannot be shipped over long distances, their use in routine positron emission tomography (PET) studies is dependent on the production capabilities of individual radiochemistry laboratories. Since 2003, 11 C-labeled Pittsburgh compound B ([11 C]PiB) has been the gold standard PET radiotracer for in vivo imaging of amyloid β (Aβ) plaques. For more than two decades, researchers have been working to develop faster, higher-yielding, more robust, and optimized production methods with higher radiochemical yields for various imaging applications...

Poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) activation often indicates a disruptive signal to lipid metabolism, the physiological alteration of which may be implicated in the development of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. The objective of this study was to evaluate the capability of [68 Ga]DOTA-PARPi PET to detect hepatic PARP expression in a non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) mouse model. In this study, male C57BL/6 mice were subjected to a choline-deficient, L-amino acid-defined, high-fat diet (CDAHFD) for a 12-week period to establish preclinical NASH models...

High-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSOC) is the most common type of epithelial ovarian cancer with insidious onset, rapid growth, and invasive spread. Here, we reported the diagnosis and treatment of a 53-year-old patient with a history of hysterectomy aided by the 68 Ga-FAPI PET/MR scan. The patient was first presented to the local hospital with a lump on the left side of the neck with a biopsy suggesting metastatic cancer. Pelvic ultrasonography revealed two irregular masses. After admission, tumor markers, pathology consultation of the biopsy, and the 68 Ga-FAPI PET/MR scan were administered...

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the value of 99m Tc-pertechnetate scan in postoperative differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) patients with lymph node (LN) metastases (LNM) uptake 99m Tc-pertechnetate, especially the predictive value to their response to radioiodine-131 (131 I) therapy. METHODS: This retrospective study collected 752 patients with DTC and LNM treated at Zhejiang Cancer Hospital between May 2012 and December 2017. Depending on the ability of LNM uptake 99m Tc-pertechnetate, the patients were grouped as the 99m Tc-pertechnetate-avid (n=88) vs...

The aim of this study is to determine the factors affecting the CT attenuation of bone marrow, and its correlation with 18 F-FDG uptake. The mean standardized uptake value (SUV) of vertebral bone marrow (Vertebral-SUV) and femoral bone marrow (Femoral-SUV) as well as CT number of bone marrow (BM-CT number) were measured in 243 patients who had undergone 18 F-FDG PET/CT. The correlations among BM-CT number, Femoral-SUV, and Vertebral-SUV were investigated. The relationships of Femoral-SUV, Vertebral-SUV, and BM-CT number with blood parameters, age, blood sugar, and body weight were analyzed by correlation and multi-regression analyses...

In the current issue of American Journal of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, Vasdev et al. presented a work entitled "In Vitro Evaluation of PET Radiotracers for Imaging Synaptic Density, the Acetylcholine Transporter, AMPA-tarp-γ8 and Muscarinic M4 receptors in Alzheimer's disease". In which, in vitro autoradiography studies using radioligands were employed as a valuable tool to gain more insights for potential clinical translation. In this invited perspective, we would like to briefly introduce the current state of AD diagnosis, especially PET imaging on synapse, and highlight the advances of PET imaging in pre-clinic and clinic that might assist on precise therapy in the future...

This study aimed to evaluate the diagnostic value of uptake ratios in the extraocular muscles (EOMs), lacrimal glands, and optic nerves to detect the inflammation activity of Graves' ophthalmopathy (GO) using quantitative analysis of 99m technetium (99m Tc)-labeled diethylene triamine pentaacetic acid (DTPA) orbital single-photon emission computed tomography/computed tomography (SPECT/CT) images. The patients were categorized into an active stage (clinical activity score ≥ 3/7, n=23) or an inactive stage (clinical activity score < 3/7, n=38), based on their clinical activity score...

Radionuclide antibody conjugate (RAC) is a promising diagnostic and therapeutic tool. It combines radionuclides and antibodies by connecting arms and chelating agents, offering precise targeting and potent killing of tumor cells. However, further development and optimization of this radiopharmaceutical is needed to enhance the ultimate substantive efficacy for clinical translation. In this issue of AJNMMI, Strand et al. evaluated the enhanced permeability effect and different linear energy transfer (LET) of radionuclides in a prostate cancer xenograft model...

Primary malignant melanoma most frequently occurs in the skin. Melanoma affecting the gastrointestinal (GI) tract has been substantiated for lesions occurring in the esophagus, stomach, small bowel, and anorectum through multiple published reports, given the presence of melanocytes in these areas. Nevertheless, owing to the exceedingly low incidence of this disease, reports on its clinical features are few, and treatment approaches lack standardization. In this study, we present three cases of GI melanoma with imaging manifestations, emphasizing the pivotal role of 18 F-FDG PET/CT in staging for GI melanoma...

Giant cell tumor (GCT) is a benign yet locally aggressive bone neoplasm typically situated in the juxta-articular metaphysis of long bones. Although spinal involvement is rare, it is predominantly reported in the axial skeleton, with the sacrum being the primary location. Conversely, GCTs are notably uncommon in the thoracic spine. In this report, we present computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and 2-Deoxy-2-[fluorine-18]-fluoro-D-glucose (18 F-FDG) positron emission tomography combined with computed tomography (PET/CT) multimodality imaging findings of a 36-year-old woman diagnosed with a GCT of the thoracic spine...

The aim was to utilize three segmentation methods on 18 F-FDG PET/CT and PET/MR images of pancreatic neoplasm patients, and further compare the effectiveness in differentiating benign from malignant, TNM-stage and prognosis. We conducted a retrospective analysis of 51 patients with pancreatic neoplasm who had undergone 18 F-FDG PET/CT and PET/MR before treatment. The patients were categorized into malignant and benign groups. For each patient, the lesion was segmented by 3 thresholds and we recorded TNM-stage, treatment strategy, time to death, and the performance status of survivors...

Extranodal NK/T-cell lymphoma (ENKTL) is an uncommon subtype of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma that is closely related to Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection. ENKTL exhibits distinctive clinicopathological features among lymphomas and has poor overall survival in the absence of effective treatment. The timely and accurate diagnosis of ENKTL is crucial for effective treatment and a positive prognosis. 18 F-Fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography/computed tomography (18 F-FDG PET/CT) has emerged as an invaluable diagnostic modality for staging, curative effect evaluation, and prognosis analysis in ENKTL...

BACKGROUND: Children and young adults have a vast array of electronics at their fingertips. While it can provide endless hours of entertainment and education, we are also seeing a structural consequence. Children are using these devices with their head tilted down with poor posture resulting in increased stress on the skull from attached structures which can lead to a bone spur (exostosis) at the external occipital protuberance (EOP). While typically painless, it can progress to necessitate surgical intervention...

Waldenstrom macroglobulinemia (WM) is a rare inert B lymphocyte lymphoma and the role of FDG PET/CT imaging in WM has not been well established. This study aimed to evaluate the metabolic status of WM by 18 F-FDG PET/CT imaging. We retrospectively analyzed 20 patients who underwent pretherapy 18 F-FDG PET-CT scan. All patients were diagnosed by bone marrow aspiration, laboratory examination and clinical symptoms. Bone marrow involvement was identified with 18 F-FDG PET/CT imaging in 16 of 20, and the mean SUVmax of bone marrow was 4...

The earlier identification of EGFR mutation status in lung adenocarcinoma patients is crucial for treatment decision-making. Radiomics, which involves high-throughput extraction of imaging features from medical images for quantitative analysis, can quantify tumor heterogeneity and assess tumor biology non-invasively. This field has gained attention from researchers in recent years. The aim of this study is to establish a model based on 18 F-FDG PET/CT radiomic features to predict the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutation status of lung adenocarcinoma and evaluate its performance...

A remarkable body of new data establishes that many degenerative brain diseases and some acute injury situations in the brain may be associated with ferroptosis. In recent years, ferroptosis has also attracted great interest in the cancer research community, partly because it is a unique mode of cell death distinct from other forms and thus has great therapeutic potential for brain cancer. Glioblastoma is a highly aggressive and fatal human cancer, accounting for 60% of all primary brain tumors. Despite the development of various pharmacological and surgical modalities, the survival rates of high-grade gliomas have remained poor over the past few decades...

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to determine the read-out capabilities of the novel C-X-C motif chemokine receptor 4 (CXCR4)-targeting radiotracer [68 Ga]Ga-PentixaFor compared to the reference radiotracer [18 F]FDG in untreated individuals with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). MATERIAL AND METHODS: 12 patients with histologically confirmed HNSCC were scheduled for [18 F]FDG and [68 Ga]Ga-PentixaFor PET/CT. Maximum standardized uptake values (SUVmax ) and target-to-background ratios (TBR) were applied with vena cava superior serving as reference...