title: Usefulness of 18F-FDG PET/CT in the detection of neurolymphomatosis.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Neurolymphomatosis (NL) is an uncommon complication of lymphoma and leukemia. Few data have been reported regarding the utilization of fluorine-18 fluorodeoxyglucose PET/computed tomography (F-FDG PET/CT) in this disease. The aim of this study was to assess the role of F-FDG PET/CT in the diagnosis of NL.
  
  
  METHODS
  Eight patients who suffered from NL due to lymphoma or leukemia were studied. The diagnosis of NL lesions was established according to ;the combination of neurologic symptoms, and imaging techniques including MRI and PET/CT, and/or analysis of cerebrospinal fluid, pathology, and clinical follow-up.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Eight patients with lymphoma or leukemia were diagnosed with NL during or after treatment. F-FDG PET/CT was positive in all eight patients. A total of 19 NL lesions were detected by F-FDG PET/CT. Morphological abnormality was seen in seven of 19 lesions on the syn-modality CT. However, all lesions were F-FDG avid with a maximum standardized uptake value of 6.42 ± 3.02, and presented with linear and nodular hypermetabolic patterns. There was a significant difference in the detection of NL lesions between PET and syn-modality CT [100% (19/19) vs. 36.8% (7/19), χ=14.74, P<0.001]. The NL lesions were located predominantly in the nerve root of the thoracic and lumbar segments (63.2%). In four patients, PET/CT was performed after treatment and was useful for assessing the treatment response.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  F-FDG PET/CT is a sensitive imaging modality for the detection of NL lesions. Further research involving more patients is needed to confirm our findings.
authors.affiliation: aNanFang PET Center, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University bMedical Device School, Guangdong Food and Drug Vocational College, Guangzhou, China.
authors.forename: Wen-lan
authors.initials: WL
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.forename: Hu-bing
authors.initials: HB
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Can-shuo
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Weng
authors.forename: Yan-jiang
authors.initials: YJ
authors.lastname: Han
authors.forename: Meng
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Shun
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Quan-shi
authors.initials: QS
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D019788:Fluorodeoxyglucose F18; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008223:Lymphoma / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D064847:Multimodal Imaging; D049268:Positron-Emission Tomography; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D019788:Fluorodeoxyglucose F18