title: Association of high metabolic activity measured by positron emission tomography imaging with poor prognosis of choroidal melanoma.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the prognostic value of positron emission tomography (PET) imaging in patients with choroidal melanoma.
  
  
  METHODS
  We undertook a retrospective review of 40 consecutive patients with choroidal melanoma who underwent pretreatment whole-body PET, received either brachytherapy using ruthenium-106 plaque, enucleation or gamma knife radiotherapy, and had 1 year of follow-up. Metabolic activity of choroidal melanoma measured as standardised uptake value (SUV) by PET imaging was evaluated with respect to the survival of patients.
  
  
  RESULTS
  SUV (p=0.003) and the largest basal diameter of the tumour (p=0.003) were significantly correlated with metastatic death (Cox proportional hazards regression). There was an inverse correlation between tumour metabolic activity and time to metastasis (p=0.049; linear regression).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Metabolic activity by PET imaging significantly predicted the survival of patients with choroidal melanoma.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, The Institute of Vision Research, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Sodaemungu Shinchondong 134, Seoul 120-752, Korea. sunglee@yuhs.ac
authors.forename: Christopher Seungkyu
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Arthur
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Cho
authors.forename: Kyu Sung
authors.initials: KS
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Sung Chul
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Lee
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001918:Brachytherapy / Q000379:methods; D002830:Choroid Neoplasms / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology / Q000532:radiotherapy; D004812:Epidemiologic Methods; D015353:Eye Enucleation; D005260:Female; D005720:Gamma Rays / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006801:Humans; D007090:Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods; D008297:Male; D008545:Melanoma / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology / Q000532:radiotherapy / Q000556:secondary; D008875:Middle Aged; D064847:Multimodal Imaging / Q000379:methods; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D049268:Positron-Emission Tomography; D011379:Prognosis; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D055815:Young Adult