Carbon-11-methionine PET evaluation of intracerebral hematoma: distinguishing neoplastic from non-neoplastic hematoma.
We evaluated whether PET with L-methyl-11C-methionine (11C-methionine) was clinically useful in distinguishing neoplastic from non-neoplastic intracerebral hematoma.


METHODS
We examined eight patients with neoplastic (n = 4) or non-neoplastic (n = 4) intracerebral hematomas between 5 and 68 days after the bleeding episode using PET with 11C-methionine (Met-PET).


RESULTS
Carbon-11-methionine accumulated in the area surrounding the hematoma in both groups, except in one patient with an acute hypertensive hematoma. Between 22 and 45 days after the ictus, non-neoplastic hematomas showed increased 11C-methionine accumulation largely in accordance with the contrast-enhanced areas on CT or MR images; whereas between 14 and 68 days after bleeding, neoplastic hematomas showed increased 11C-methionine accumulation that extended beyond the contrast-enhanced areas on CT or MR images. The intensity of 11C-methionine accumulation in tumor tissue was greater than that in non-neoplastic hematomas.


CONCLUSIONS
Preliminary results suggest that Met-PET can distinguish neoplastic from non-neoplastic hematomas on the basis of differences in lesion extent compared with CT or MR findings.
Ogawa
T
T
Department of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Research Institute of Brain and Blood Vessels, Akita, Japan.
Hatazawa
J
J
Inugami
A
A
Murakami
M
M
Fujita
H
H
Shimosegawa
E
E
Noguchi
K
K
Okudera
T
T
Kanno
I
I
Uemura
K
K
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001932:Brain Neoplasms / Q000150:complications* / Q000175:diagnosis; D002250:Carbon Radioisotopes; D002543:Cerebral Hemorrhage / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000209:etiology*; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D005909:Glioblastoma / Q000150:complications* / Q000175:diagnosis; D006406:Hematoma / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000209:etiology*; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008715:Methionine; D008875:Middle Aged; D013997:Time Factors; D014055:Tomography, Emission-Computed; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed
D002250:Carbon Radioisotopes; D008715:Methionine