Early detection of response to imatinib therapy for gastrointestinal stromal tumor by using 18F-FDG-positron emission tomography and computed tomography imaging.

A 41-year old female with metastatic gastrointestinal stromal tumor was referred to 18F-FDG-positron emission tomography and computed tomography (PET/CT) scan before and after one-month treatment with imatinib (Glivec, Gleevec, Novartis, Basel, Switzerland), a tyrosine kinase inhibitor (400 mg/d). Metabolic response was evaluated before and after one month of therapy. The decrease of the maximum standardised uptake value (SUV) was 79% (from 9.8 to 2.1). Positron emission tomography demonstrated complete metabolic response after one-month of imatinib treatment. Additionally, the previous lesion was compared with the coronal computerized tomographic image. There was no difference in the size of the tumor before and after therapy according to CT images. However, metabolic activity was inhibited. 18F-FDG-PET is a valuable method for the detection of response to one-month imatinib treatment in patients with gastrointestinal stromal tumors.