title: Importance of screening for synchronous malignant neoplasms in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma: impact of FDG PET/CT.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Synchronous neoplasms (SNs) are occasionally found in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). We examined such cases and the efficacy of 18-fluoro-2-deoxyglucose positron-emission tomography computed tomography (PET/CT), retrospectively.
  
  
  METHODS
  We investigated 687 naïve HCC, who were admitted to our hospitals, encountered from October 2006 to December 2010 and evaluated the clinical backgrounds. All study protocols, was approved by our Institutional Ethics Committee. The usefulness of detecting SNs by PET/CT was evaluated in 234 patients who underwent PET/CT (PET group) and in 453 (non-PET group) examined in the same period. We noted the presence of SNs, defined as primary extrahepatic malignant neoplasms within 1 year of diagnosis of HCC.
  
  
  RESULTS
  SNs were observed in 48 of 687 patients (54 tumours, 7.0%). SNs were detected by PET/CT in 18, which was 7.7% of PET group. The detection rate for SNs, were increased to 11.1% (26/234) in PET group by using together with upper gastrointestinal endoscopy and routine enhanced CT for HCC, which was greater than that of non-PET group (22/453, 4.9%) (P < 0.001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  SNs were pointed out more frequently in PET group than non-PET group (11.1% vs. 4.9%). FDG PET/CT can enhance the detection ability for SNs in naïve HCC.
authors.affiliation: Gastroenterology Center, Ehime Prefectural Central Hospital, Ehime, Japan. hirage@m.ehime-u.ac.jp
authors.forename: Atsushi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hiraoka
authors.forename: Masashi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hirooka
authors.forename: Hironori
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ochi
authors.forename: Yohei
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Koizumi
authors.forename: Yuko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Shimizu
authors.forename: Akiko
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Shiraishi
authors.forename: Hiroka
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Yamago
authors.forename: Tetsuya
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Tanihira
authors.forename: Hideki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Miyata
authors.forename: Tomoyuki
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ninomiya
authors.forename: Hideki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kawasaki
authors.forename: Yoshihiro
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ishimaru
authors.forename: Ichiro
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Sogabe
authors.forename: Takeshi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Inoue
authors.forename: Masanori
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Abe
authors.forename: Yoichi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Hiasa
authors.forename: Bunzo
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Matsuura
authors.forename: Morikazu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Onji
authors.forename: Kojiro
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Michitaka
mesh_terms: D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000473:pathology*; D055088:Early Detection of Cancer / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*; D016609:Neoplasms, Second Primary / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology*; D049268:Positron-Emission Tomography / Q000379:methods*; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric
keywords: hepatocellular carcinoma; positron-emission tomography and computed tomography; synchronous neoplasm