Fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography in clinical oncology: the referrer's perspective.
From January 2000 to April 2002 a prospective audit based on a questionnaire was carried out concerning the attitudes and viewpoints of clinicians referring patients to fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG PET) scanning. A standard and structured audit form was posted to each referring doctor with the formal clinical report issued by the nuclear medicine consultant. Three hundred and thirty evaluable forms were analysed, a return rate of approximately 22%, from a total of 1500 PET patients studied during this period. FDG PET scanning was deemed by the referring physician to have altered the staging of cancer patients in 39% of all cases. Twenty-five per cent of patients were upstaged with FDG PET and 14% of patients downstaged. Patient management was changed in 39% of cases whilst a change in treatment occurred in 10% of cases. The reported FDG PET study was judged as being helpful in over 75% of all cases. These data further support evidence of the increasing role of FDG studies in the investigation of patients with cancer.
Gopalan
D
D
Institute of Nuclear Medicine, UCL and UCLH NHS Trust, Mortimer Street, London, UK.
Griffiths
D
D
Townsend
C
C
Prvulovich
E
E
Bomanji
J
J
Costa
D C
DC
Ell
P J
PJ
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D002648:Child; D003657:Decision Making; D019468:Disease Management; D005260:Female; D019788:Fluorodeoxyglucose F18; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008495:Medical Oncology / Q000379:methods; D008875:Middle Aged; D009367:Neoplasm Staging / Q000379:methods* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy; D010818:Practice Patterns, Physicians'; D011446:Prospective Studies; D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals; D012017:Referral and Consultation; D014055:Tomography, Emission-Computed / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006113:United Kingdom / Q000453:epidemiology
D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals; D019788:Fluorodeoxyglucose F18