title: Early positron emission tomography (PET) restaging: a predictive final response in Hodgkin's disease patients.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  It is important to distinguish between responders to standard treatment and non-responders Hodgkin's disease (HD) patients.
  
  
  METHODS
  Between June 2003-September 2004, in our institute, 40 newly-diagnosed patients with advanced stage HD were consecutively treated with ABVD chemotherapy for six cycles. All these patients underwent staging/restaging: computed tomography (CT) and positron emission tomography (PET) at time 0, PET after two cycles, CT and PET after four and six cycles.
  
  
  RESULTS
  After two cycles (PET-2), the PET was negative in 28/40 (70%), positive in 8/40 (20%), and minimal residual uptake (MRU) was present in the remaining four (10%) patients. After treatment, among eight patients who were PET-2+, seven showed refractory disease and one had relapse after 3 months. All four patients with MRU at the PET-2 became PET- during the further four cycles and, after treatment, three were in complete response (CR) and one relapsed after 5 months. All 28 PET negative patients at the PET-2 remained PET negative and all of them were in CR after treatment.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The PET use for early (after two cycles) response assessment in HD patients is a significant step forward and has the potential to help physicians make crucial decisions about further treatment.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Hematology and Medical Oncology L. e A. Seràgnoli, University of Bologna, and Nuclear Medicine, S'Orsola Hospital, Italy. plzinzo@med.unibo.it
authors.forename: P L
authors.initials: PL
authors.lastname: Zinzani
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tani
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Fanti
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Alinari
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Musuraca
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Marchi
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Stefoni
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Castellucci
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fina
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Farshad
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Pileri
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Baccarani
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006689:Hodgkin Disease / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000473:pathology* / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D049268:Positron-Emission Tomography; D011379:Prognosis