En-Tao Liu1, Tao-Tao Sun1, Hao-Jian Dong2, Si-Yun Wang1, Ze-Rui Chen3, Chao Liu4, Dan Shao1, Zhou-Yang Lian5, Qiu Xie6, Shu-Xia Wang7. 1. WeiLun PET Center, Department of Nuclear Medicine, Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital, Guangdong Academy of Medical Sciences, Room 517, 5/F, Weilun Building of Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital, 106 Zhongshan Er Road, Guangzhou, 510080, Guangdong, People's Republic of China. 2. Department of Cardiology, Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital, Guangdong Academy of Medical Sciences, 106 Zhongshan Er Road, Guangzhou, 510080, Guangdong, People's Republic of China. 3. Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital, Guangdong Academy of Medical Sciences, 106 Zhongshan Er Road, Guangzhou, 510080, Guangdong, People's Republic of China. 4. Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital, Guangdong Academy of Medical Sciences, 106 Zhongshan Er Road, Guangzhou, 510080, Guangdong, People's Republic of China. 5. Department of Radiology, Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital, Guangdong Academy of Medical Sciences, 106 Zhongshan Er Road, Guangzhou, 510080, Guangdong, People's Republic of China. 6. Division of Adult Echocardiography, Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital, Guangdong Academy of Medical Sciences, 106 Zhongshan Er Road, Guangzhou, 510080, Guangdong, People's Republic of China. 7. WeiLun PET Center, Department of Nuclear Medicine, Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital, Guangdong Academy of Medical Sciences, Room 517, 5/F, Weilun Building of Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital, 106 Zhongshan Er Road, Guangzhou, 510080, Guangdong, People's Republic of China. shuxia_wangGGH@outlook.com.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: 18F-FDG PET/CT is a key molecular imaging modality to noninvasively assess and differentiate benign and malignant cardiac tumors. However, few benign cardiac tumors can be characterized by increased 18F-FDG uptake, which makes differential diagnosis difficult. This study sought to retrospectively evaluate whether combined 18F-FDG PET/CT with thoracic contrast-enhanced CT (CECT) helps in assessing primary cardiac tumors in adult patients, compared with CECT or PET/CT alone. METHODS: Forty-six consecutive patients who were diagnosed as primary cardiac tumors were enrolled. All patients underwent 18F-FDG PET/CT followed by thoracic CECT before biopsy or surgery. Visual qualitative interpretation and quantitative analysis were performed, and diagnostic performance was evaluated. RESULTS: More than half (16/29) of benign tumors exhibited with mild 18F-FDG uptake. There were significant differences in 18F-FDG uptake and the degree of absolute enhancement between benign and malignant tumors (P < 0.001). The combination of two modalities improved the specificity from 79 to 93%, the positive predictive value from 73 to 89%, and the accuracy of diagnosis from 85 to 93%. There were significant differences between PET/CT alone or thoracic CECT alone and combined modalities (P = 0.034 and P = 0.026, respectively). The combination with the optimal SUVmax cutoff value generated 94% sensitivity, 100% specificity, 97% negative predictive values, 100% positive predictive values, and 98% accuracy rates. CONCLUSIONS: Combining 18F-FDG PET/C with thoracic CECT significantly improved specificity and accuracy compared to CECT or PET/CT alone in detecting tumors. This combination of diagnostic imaging is effective in differentiating malignant from benign masses.
BACKGROUND:18F-FDG PET/CT is a key molecular imaging modality to noninvasively assess and differentiate benign and malignant cardiac tumors. However, few benign cardiac tumors can be characterized by increased 18F-FDG uptake, which makes differential diagnosis difficult. This study sought to retrospectively evaluate whether combined 18F-FDG PET/CT with thoracic contrast-enhanced CT (CECT) helps in assessing primary cardiac tumors in adult patients, compared with CECT or PET/CT alone. METHODS: Forty-six consecutive patients who were diagnosed as primary cardiac tumors were enrolled. All patients underwent 18F-FDG PET/CT followed by thoracic CECT before biopsy or surgery. Visual qualitative interpretation and quantitative analysis were performed, and diagnostic performance was evaluated. RESULTS: More than half (16/29) of benign tumors exhibited with mild 18F-FDG uptake. There were significant differences in 18F-FDG uptake and the degree of absolute enhancement between benign and malignant tumors (P < 0.001). The combination of two modalities improved the specificity from 79 to 93%, the positive predictive value from 73 to 89%, and the accuracy of diagnosis from 85 to 93%. There were significant differences between PET/CT alone or thoracic CECT alone and combined modalities (P = 0.034 and P = 0.026, respectively). The combination with the optimal SUVmax cutoff value generated 94% sensitivity, 100% specificity, 97% negative predictive values, 100% positive predictive values, and 98% accuracy rates. CONCLUSIONS: Combining 18F-FDG PET/C with thoracic CECT significantly improved specificity and accuracy compared to CECT or PET/CT alone in detecting tumors. This combination of diagnostic imaging is effective in differentiating malignant from benign masses.