title: [Prognostic value of 18F-FDG positron emission tomography in the early evaluation of the efficiency of treatment in patients with non-Hodgkin lymphomas].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To define the role of 18F-FDG positron emission tomography (PET) performed after 2-3 chemotherapy cycles in the prediction of disease prognosis and to identify a group of patients requiring more intensive treatment.
  
  
  METHODS
  Seventy-one patients with non-Hodgkin lymphoma of different histological types were examined. PET was carried out at different stages of diagnosis and primary treatment in the patients.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The examinations made after 2-3 polychemotherapy (PCT) cycles indicated that 36 (50.7%) patients continued to have signs of metabolic activity of lymphoproliferative disease (a PET-positive group) and 35 (49.3%) patients were found to have no abnormal tracer accumulation foci (a PET-negative group). Twenty-nine (82.9%) patients from the PET-negative group continued to remain in complete remission throughout the follow-up (the median follow-up was 405 days). At late stages, 6 (17.1%) patients were identified to have abnormal tracer hyperfixation foci that were indicative of disease recurrence. Only 8 patients from the PET-positive group were observed to show a complete metabolic response to treatment at the end of first-line PCT. The metabolic activity of the disease was maintained in the remaining patients. The results of PET conducted at the late stages of the follow-up indicated that metabolically active tumor foci continued to be visualized in 20 (55.6%) patients and further treatment resulted in complete remission in 16 (44.4%) patients.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  PET findings could predict the further course of the disease and differentiate more intensive treatment-requiring patients at the early stages of chemotherapy.
authors.forename: M M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Khodzhibekova
authors.forename: L A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Tiutin
authors.forename: N A
authors.initials: NA
authors.lastname: Kostenikov
authors.forename: N V
authors.initials: NV
authors.lastname: Il'in
authors.forename: Iu N
authors.initials: IuN
authors.lastname: Vinogradova
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000971:Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols / Q000627:therapeutic use; D003627:Data Interpretation, Statistical; D005260:Female; D019788:Fluorodeoxyglucose F18; D006801:Humans; D008228:Lymphoma, Non-Hodgkin / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000188:drug therapy; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018579:Patient Selection; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011379:Prognosis; D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D018570:Risk Assessment; D013997:Time Factors; D014055:Tomography, Emission-Computed / Q000379:methods*; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals; D019788:Fluorodeoxyglucose F18