18F FDG PET/CT and Head and Neck Cancer: Patient Management and Outcomes.

There is a growing body of evidence that point to the value of 18F fluoro-deoxyglucose-PET/CT in the management of head and neck cancer (HNC) patients and predicting patient-related outcomes. FDG-PET/CT changes the baseline staging (compared with CT or MR imaging), guides appropriate therapy selection, separates the responders and non-responders for therapy assessment, adds value to clinical assessment in follow-up, and predicts patient survival outcomes. FDG-PET/CT can identify the recurrences in earlier stages and individualize follow-up regimens in HNC patients. This article reviews the value of FDG-PET/CT in management strategy and survival outcome of HNC patients.