title: PET-methionine of skull base neuromas and meningiomas.
abstract: Eighteen patients with intracranial skull base tumours diagnosed at CT or MR as neuromas or meningiomas were studied with positron emission tomography (PET) using L-(methyl-11C) methionine. Compared with normal cerebellar tissue, the uptake of methionine in the tumours increased more rapidly and reached a higher level, and showed a slow decline after a peak occurring about 5 min after the injection. All the meningiomas exhibited considerably higher accumulation of the tracer compared with the surrounding cerebellar tissue, which made the tumour easy to identify and to demarcate from the surrounding cerebellar tissue, which made the tumour easy to identify and to demarcate from the surrounding structures (tumour to cerebellum ratios 2.62-5.37, mean 3.63). The uptake was homogeneous in all meningiomas, which were all of the syncytial type. The neuromas showed lower contrast against the cerebellum (tumour to cerebellum ratios 1.1-1.87, mean 1.48). Some neuromas displayed an irregular pattern with regions of decreased tracer uptake corresponding to small cystic areas within the neuroma. There was no overlap in methionine uptake between the two tumour groups. The results indicate that PET-methionine may contribute to the evaluation, treatment planning and follow-up of patients with skull base meningiomas and neuromas.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Uppsala University Hospital, Sweden.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Nyberg
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bergström
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Enblad
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Lilja
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Muhr
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Långström
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002531:Cerebellum / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008579:Meningioma / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000378:metabolism; D008715:Methionine / Q000493:pharmacokinetics; D008875:Middle Aged; D009464:Neuroma, Acoustic / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000378:metabolism; D011849:Radioactive Tracers; D019291:Skull Base / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000378:metabolism; D012888:Skull Neoplasms / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000378:metabolism; D014055:Tomography, Emission-Computed; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed
chemical_list: D011849:Radioactive Tracers; D008715:Methionine