title: Value of PET/CT versus PET and CT performed as separate investigations in patients with Hodgkin's disease and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this study was to assess the clinical benefit of combined [(18)F]FDG PET/CT in patients with malignant lymphoma as compared to separately performed PET and CT.
  
  
  METHODS
  Overall, 100 patients with Hodgkin's disease (HD) or non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) were included in this study. Co-registered PET/CT with [(18)F]FDG and contrast medium was performed in 50 consecutive patients with NHL (n=38) or HD (n=12) for initial staging (IS) (n=12) or re-treatment staging (RS) (n=38). Another 50 patients with NHL (n=32) or HD (n=18) underwent separate PET and CT investigations within a time frame of 10 days for IS (n=22) or RS (n=28). Lymphoma involvement was separately evaluated for seven different regions in each patient. Each patient had clinical follow-up evaluation for >6 months. PET and CT data were analysed separately as well as side-by-side or in fused mode.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In the PET/CT group, region-based evaluation for lymphoma involvement suggested a sensitivity/specificity of 85%/91% for CT, 98%/99% for PET and 98%/99% for PET/CT. In the PET and CT group, region-based evaluation showed a sensitivity/specificity of 87%/80% for CT, 98%/99% for PET and 98%/100% for PET and CT read side by side.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  PET was superior to CT alone and was improved further by side-by-side reading of both examinations. However, no significant difference was observed between PET/CT and separate PET and CT imaging in patients with lymphoma.
authors.affiliation: Department of Nuclear Medicine, Ludwig-Maximilians-University of Munich, Munich, Germany. christian.lafougere@med.uni-muenchen.de
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: la Fougère
authors.forename: Walter
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Hundt
authors.forename: Nicole
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Bröckel
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Pfluger
authors.forename: Alexander
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Haug
authors.forename: Bernhard
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Scher
authors.forename: Marcus
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hacker
authors.forename: Klaus
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hahn
authors.forename: Maximilan
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Reiser
authors.forename: Reinhold
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Tiling
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D006689:Hodgkin Disease / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D008228:Lymphoma, Non-Hodgkin / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D049268:Positron-Emission Tomography / Q000379:methods*; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed / Q000379:methods*