title: PET imaging for brain tumor diagnostics.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Brain tumors differ in histology, biology, prognosis and treatment options. Although structural magnetic resonance is still the gold standard for morphological tumor characterization, molecular imaging has gained an increasing importance in assessment of tumor activity and malignancy.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Amino acid PET is frequently used for surgery and biopsy planning as well as therapy monitoring in suspected primary brain tumors as well as metastatic lesions, whereas 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (18F-FDG) remains the tracer of choice for evaluation of patients with primary central nervous system lymphoma. Application of somatostatin receptor ligands has improved tumor delineation in skull base meningioma and concurrently opened up new treatment possibilities in recurrent or surgically not assessable tumors.Recent development focuses on the implementation of hybrid PET/MRI as well as on the development of new tracers targeting tumor hypoxia, enzymes involved in neoplastic metabolic pathways and the combination of PET tracers with therapeutic agents.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Implementation of molecular imaging in the clinical routine continues to improve management in patients with brain tumors. However, more prospective large sample studies are needed to validate the additional informative value of PET.
authors.affiliation: aDepartment of Neurosurgery bDepartment of Nuclear Medicine, University Hospital, Ludwig Maximilians University, Munich, Germany.
authors.forename: Bogdana
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Suchorska
authors.forename: Joerg C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Tonn
authors.forename: Nathalie L
authors.initials: NL
authors.lastname: Jansen
mesh_terms: D001932:Brain Neoplasms / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D019788:Fluorodeoxyglucose F18; D006801:Humans; D049268:Positron-Emission Tomography
chemical_list: D019788:Fluorodeoxyglucose F18