Diagnosis of intracranial lymphoma in patients with AIDS: value of 201TI single-photon emission computed tomography.
OBJECTIVE
Although the prevalence of intracranial lymphoma is high among patients with AIDS, current imaging techniques are not reliable for differentiating this tumor from other common nonneoplastic lesions, such as those seen in toxoplasmosis. The purpose of this study was to prospectively investigate the use of 201Tl single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) in identifying intracranial lymphoma in patients with AIDS.


METHODS
Thirteen patients with AIDS and intracranial masses underwent 201Tl imaging with a three-headed SPECT camera. Sic of the 13 were subsequently proved to have lymphoma. Studies were interpreted prospectively as showing tumor if uptake of 201Tl was increased in the region where the lesion was seen on MR images. A lesion-to-nonlesion uptake ratio (counts/pixel) was calculated retrospectively.


RESULTS
The SPECT images of six patients were interpreted prospectively as showing no lymphoma. Uptake ratios in these six patients were 0.77-1.95 (mean, 1.45). In each, tumor was excluded as a final diagnosis (four had toxoplasmosis, one had progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy, and one had venous angioma). Among the seven patients with SPECT images interpreted as showing lymphoma, six were later proved to have lymphoma (uptake ratio: mean, 3.65; range, 2.95-4.30; p < .005). The SPECT findings in the seventh patient were classified as false-positive for tumor on the basis of the prospective interpretation of the images; three concurrent infections were found at autopsy. The uptake ratio in this patient was low (1.81), suggesting that quantification might have diagnostic usefulness for improving accuracy.


CONCLUSIONS
This preliminary study indicates that 201Tl SPECT might be a useful, noninvasive method for differentiating intracranial lymphoma from nonneoplastic lesions in patients with AIDS.
Department of Radiology, Georgetown University Hospital, Washington, DC 20007.
J P
JP
O'Malley
H A
HA
Ziessman
P N
PN
Kumar
B A
BA
Harkness
J G
JG
Tall
P F
PF
Pierce
D017088:AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D000328:Adult; D001921:Brain / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology; D001932:Brain Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000453:epidemiology; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016483:Lymphoma, AIDS-Related / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000453:epidemiology; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013794:Thallium Radioisotopes; D015899:Tomography, Emission-Computed, Single-Photon; D016781:Toxoplasmosis, Cerebral / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging
D013794:Thallium Radioisotopes