title: Combining 6-fluoro-[18F]l-dihydroxyphenylalanine and [18F]fluoro-2-deoxy-d-glucose positron emission tomography for distinction of non-carcinoid malignancies in carcinoid patients.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Carcinoid patients frequently develop a second primary malignancy (SPM), which can deserve full treatment. Distinguishing a SPM from carcinoid lesions is therefore important. Differentiation can be achieved using the difference in uptake between different positron emission tomography (PET) tracers.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Between January 2005 and August 2008, 105 carcinoid patients were seen at the Department of Medical Oncology for treatment and follow-up. We identified 3 patients who presented with a new SPM in whom differentiation between carcinoid lesions and the SPM was guided by functional imaging of the catecholamine pathway with 6-fluoro-[(18)F]l-dihydroxyphenylalanine ((18)F-DOPA) PET and [(18)F]fluoro-2-deoxy-d-glucose ((18)F-FDG) PET as radiotracer for the glucose metabolism. All 3 patients had metastatic carcinoid disease and localised adenocarcinoma based on the PET-scans. For the adenocarcinoma they received curative treatment.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The difference in uptake between these PET techniques can be used for decision making when a primary or metastatic SPM is suspected.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Oncology, University Medical Center Groningen, 9700 RB Groningen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Helle-Brit
authors.initials: HB
authors.lastname: Fiebrich
authors.forename: Adrienne H
authors.initials: AH
authors.lastname: Brouwers
authors.forename: Klaas Pieter
authors.initials: KP
authors.lastname: Koopmans
authors.forename: Elisabeth G E
authors.initials: EG
authors.lastname: de Vries
mesh_terms: D000230:Adenocarcinoma / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000556:secondary; D000368:Aged; D002276:Carcinoid Tumor / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D004295:Dihydroxyphenylalanine / Q000031:analogs & derivatives*; D005260:Female; D019788:Fluorodeoxyglucose F18; D006801:Humans; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000556:secondary; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D049268:Positron-Emission Tomography; D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals; D012004:Rectal Neoplasms / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000556:secondary; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed
chemical_list: D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals; D019788:Fluorodeoxyglucose F18; C043437:fluorodopa F 18; D004295:Dihydroxyphenylalanine