title: F18-fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography and computed tomography is not accurate in preoperative staging of gastric cancer.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the clinical benefits of F18-fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography and computed tomography ((18)F-FDG-PET/CT) over multi-detector row CT (MDCT) in preoperative staging of gastric cancer.
  
  
  METHODS
  FDG-PET/CT and MDCT were performed on 78 patients with gastric cancer pathologically diagnosed by endoscopy. The accuracy of radiologic staging retrospectively was compared to pathologic result after curative resection.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Primary tumors were detected in 51 (65.4%) patients with (18)F-FDG-PET/CT, and 47 (60.3%) patients with MDCT. Regarding detection of lymph node metastasis, the sensitivity of FDG-PET/CT was 51.5% with an accuracy of 71.8%, whereas those of MDCT were 69.7% and 69.2%, respectively. The sensitivity of (18)F-FDG-PET/CT for a primary tumor with signet ring cell carcinoma was lower than that of (18)F-FDG-PET/CT for a primary tumor with non-signet ring cell carcinoma (35.3% vs. 73.8%, P < 0.01).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Due to its low sensitivity, (18)F-FDG-PET/CT alone shows no definite clinical benefit for prediction of lymph node metastasis in preoperative staging of gastric cancer.
authors: Department of Surgery, Hanyang University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
authors: Tae Kyung
authors: TK
authors: Ha
authors: Yun Young
authors: YY
authors: Choi
authors: Soon Young
authors: SY
authors: Song
authors: Sung Joon
authors: SJ
authors: Kwon