title: [F-18] fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography as a tool for early recognition of incomplete tumor destruction after radiofrequency ablation for liver metastases.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To assess the value of FDG positron emission tomography (PET) for early detection of incomplete tumor destruction after radiofrequency ablation (RFA) for liver metastasis.
  
  
  METHODS
  Twenty-eight unresectable liver metastases in 17 patients were treated by RFA. Patients underwent computed tomography (CT) and FDG-PET preoperatively, at 1 week, 1 month, and 3 months postoperatively. Postoperative CT and FDG-PET at 1 week and 1 month were analyzed to identify hypervascular and hypermetabolic residual tumors at the RFA site. These results were correlated with follow-up CT and, in case of reintervention, with pathologic results.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In 24/28 of RFA-treated metastases, CT and FDG-PET at 1 week and 1 month showed no tumor residues. During follow-up, none of these 13 patients developed local recurrence at RFA site. In four patients, FDG-PET at 1 week and 1 month showed peripheral hypermetabolic residue after RFA, whereas CT did not revealed residual tumor. In three patients, local persistence of viable tumor cells was biopsy-proven at reintervention. In the fourth, follow-up CT showed subsequent development of a local recurrence.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  FDG-PET accurately monitors the local efficacy of RFA for treatment of liver metastases, as it early recognizes incomplete tumor ablation, not detectable on CT.
authors.affiliation: Medicosurgical Department of Gastroenterology, Hôpital Erasme, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Brussels, Belgium. vdonckie@ulb.ac.be
authors.forename: Vincent
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Donckier
authors.forename: Jean Luc
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Van Laethem
authors.forename: Serge
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Goldman
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Van Gansbeke
authors.forename: Pascale
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Feron
authors.forename: Brigitte
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Ickx
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Wikler
authors.forename: Michel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gelin
mesh_terms: D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology; D017115:Catheter Ablation; D003110:Colonic Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology; D018572:Disease-Free Survival; D019788:Fluorodeoxyglucose F18; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D005770:Gastrointestinal Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology; D006498:Hepatectomy; D006801:Humans; D008099:Liver / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000556:secondary / Q000601:surgery*; D009364:Neoplasm Recurrence, Local / Q000209:etiology; D011184:Postoperative Period; D011446:Prospective Studies; D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals; D014055:Tomography, Emission-Computed; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed
chemical_list: D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals; D019788:Fluorodeoxyglucose F18