PET/CT Imaging in Oncology: Clinical Advances and Perspectives

A special issue of Diagnostics (ISSN 2075-4418). This special issue belongs to the section "Medical Imaging and Theranostics".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 November 2025 | Viewed by 576

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Department of Health Sciences, University of Genoa, 16132 Genova, Italy
Interests: nuclear medicine; molecular imaging; radiology; neurology; oncology

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In this Special Issue, we will explore the latest clinical advancements and future prospects of PET/CT imaging, a technology that has revolutionized cancer diagnosis, staging, and treatment planning.

PET/CT imaging, a fusion of positron emission tomography (PET) and computed tomography (CT), has emerged as a cornerstone of modern oncology. By combining functional and structural imaging data, PET/CT provides unparalleled insights into the metabolic and anatomic characteristics of tumors. This dual-modality approach enables clinicians to make more informed decisions, tailor therapies to individual patient needs, and monitor treatment response with greater precision.

We will assemble a diverse array of papers that delve into the latest clinical applications of PET/CT imaging in oncology. From the early detection and staging of various cancer types to assessing treatment efficacy and guiding therapy adjustments, the contributions in this Special Issue showcase the versatility and impact of PET/CT imaging.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Francesco Lanfranchi
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • PET/CT imaging
  • molecular imaging
  • oncology
  • cancer diagnosis
  • precision oncology
  • treatment planning

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

16 pages, 1105 KiB  
Article
Variability of Metabolic Rate and Distribution Volume Quantification in Whole-Body Parametric PATLAK [18F]-FDG PET/CT—A Prospective Trial in Patients with Lung Cancer
by Stephan Ursprung, Lars Zender, Patrick Ghibes, Florian Hagen, Konstantin Nikolaou, Christian la Fougère and Matthias Weissinger
Diagnostics 2025, 15(13), 1719; https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics15131719 - 5 Jul 2025
Viewed by 358
Abstract
Background: The recent introduction of whole-body positron emission tomography/ computed tomography (PET/CT) scanners and multi-bed, multi-time point acquisition technique enable calculating fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) kinetics in the whole body. However, validating parametric, Patlak-derived data is difficult on phantoms. Methods: This prospective study [...] Read more.
Background: The recent introduction of whole-body positron emission tomography/ computed tomography (PET/CT) scanners and multi-bed, multi-time point acquisition technique enable calculating fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) kinetics in the whole body. However, validating parametric, Patlak-derived data is difficult on phantoms. Methods: This prospective study investigated the effect of quantification methods mean, max, and peak on the metabolic rate (MR-FDG) and distribution volume (DV-FDG) quantification, as well as the diagnostic accuracy of parametric Patlak FDG-PET scans in diagnosing lung lesions and lymph node metastases, using histopathology and follow-up as reference standards. Dynamic whole-body FDG PET was acquired for 80 minutes in 34 patients with indeterminate lung lesions and kinetic parameters extracted from lung lesions and representative mediastinal and hilar lymph nodes. Results: All quantification methods—mean, max, and peak—demonstrated high diagnostic accuracy (AUC: MR-FDG: 0.987–0.991 and 0.893–0.905; DV-FDG: 0.948–0.975 and 0.812–0.825) for differentiating benign from malignant lymph nodes and lung lesions. Differences in the magnitude of MR-FDG (−4.76–14.09) and DV-FDG (−10.64–46.10%) were substantial across methods. Variability was more pronounced in lymph nodes (MR-FDG: 1.37–3.48) than in lung lesions (MR-FDG: 3.31–5.04). The variability was lowest between mean and max quantification, with percentage differences of 40.87 ± 5.69% for MR-FDG and 39.26 ± 7.68% for DV-FDG. Conclusions: The choice of method to measure MR-FDG and DV-FDG greatly influences the results, especially in smaller lesions with large and systematic differences. For lung lesions, a conversion factor between mean and max methods of 40% provides acceptable agreement, facilitating retrospective comparisons of measurements, e.g., in meta-analyses. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue PET/CT Imaging in Oncology: Clinical Advances and Perspectives)
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