title: Contrast enhanced CT versus integrated PET-CT in pre-operative nodal staging of non-small cell lung cancer.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The purpose of this study was to retrospectively evaluate the effectiveness of integrated positron emission tomography-computed tomography (PET-CT) in comparison with contrast enhanced CT (CE-CT) in pre-operative staging of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) by using surgical and pathological findings as the reference standard.
  
  
  METHODS
  From August 2008 to August 2009, 57 consecutive patients (50 males and 7 females; mean age, 59 years; range, 38-79 years) with NSCLC underwent conventional pre-operative lung cancer staging using clinical data and CE-CT of the chest, and integrated whole-body fluorine-18 fluorodeoxyglucose PET-CT studies. Histopathological results served as the reference standard.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Forty-eight of the 57 patients (84%) had no lymph node involvement (N0), five (9%) were found to have N1 disease, and four (7%) had N2 disease. There was a significant difference between CE-CT and PET-CT for nodal staging of N0 disease (P < 0.05). Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, and accuracy of hilar and mediastinal lymph node staging were 56%, 73%, 28%, 90%, and 70%, with CE-CT, respectively; and 78%, 92%, 64%, 96%, and 89% with PET-CT, respectively.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Integrated PET-CT is more accurate than CE-CT for lymph node staging in NSCLC.
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, Ege University School of Medicine, İzmir, Turkey. ceylannaim@gmail
authors.forename: Naim
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ceylan
authors.forename: Sözen
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Doğan
authors.forename: Kenan
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kocaçelebi
authors.forename: Recep
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Savaş
authors.forename: Alpaslan
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Çakan
authors.forename: Ufuk
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Çağrici
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002289:Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D003287:Contrast Media; D005260:Female; D019788:Fluorodeoxyglucose F18; D006801:Humans; D007430:Intraoperative Care / Q000379:methods; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D008198:Lymph Nodes / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D064847:Multimodal Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D011013:Pneumonectomy / Q000379:methods / Q000401:mortality; D049268:Positron-Emission Tomography; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D016019:Survival Analysis; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D003287:Contrast Media; D019788:Fluorodeoxyglucose F18