title: Role of fluorine-18 fluorodeoxyglucose PET/CT in head and neck oncology: the point of view of the radiation oncologist.
abstract: Squamous cell carcinoma is the most common malignant tumour of the head and neck. The initial TNM staging, the evaluation of the tumour response during treatment, and the long-term surveillance are crucial moments in the approach to head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). Thus, at each of these moments, the choice of the best diagnostic tool providing the more precise and larger information is crucial. Positron emission tomography with fluorine-18 fludeoxyglucose integrated with CT (18F-FDG-PET/CT) rapidly gained clinical acceptance, and it has become an important imaging tool in routine clinical oncology. However, controversial data are currently available, for example, on the role of18F-FDG-PET/CT imaging during radiotherapy planning, the prognostic value or its real clinical impact on treatment decisions. In this article, the role of18F-FDG-PET/CT imaging in HNSCC during pre-treatment staging, radiotherapy planning, treatment response assessment, prognosis and follow-up is reviewed focusing on current evidence and controversial issues. A proposal on how to integrate18F-FDG-PET/CT in daily clinical practice is also described.
authors.affiliation: 1 Radiation Oncology Department, Cruces University Hospital/Biocruces Health Research Institute, Barakaldo, Spain.|2 Grupo Español de Oncología Radioterápica en Cabeza y Cuello (GEORCC).
authors.forename: Jon
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Cacicedo
authors.affiliation: 3 Radiation Oncology Department, Hospital Duran i Reynals (ICO) Avda, Gran Via de L´Hospitalet, Hospitalet de Llobregat, Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Arturo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Navarro
authors.affiliation: 1 Radiation Oncology Department, Cruces University Hospital/Biocruces Health Research Institute, Barakaldo, Spain.
authors.forename: Olga
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Del Hoyo
authors.affiliation: 1 Radiation Oncology Department, Cruces University Hospital/Biocruces Health Research Institute, Barakaldo, Spain.
authors.forename: Alfonso
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gomez-Iturriaga
authors.affiliation: 4 Radiation Oncology Department, Sacro Cuore-Don Calabria Hospital, Verona, Italy.
authors.forename: Filippo
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Alongi
authors.affiliation: 2 Grupo Español de Oncología Radioterápica en Cabeza y Cuello (GEORCC).|5 Radiation Oncology Department, Hospital Universitario Virgen de la Victoria, Malaga, Spain.
authors.forename: Jose A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Medina
authors.affiliation: 6 Radiation Oncology Department, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, Bern, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Olgun
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Elicin
authors.affiliation: 7 Nuclear Medicine Department, Hospices Civils de Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, Lyon, France.
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Skanjeti
authors.affiliation: 7 Nuclear Medicine Department, Hospices Civils de Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, Lyon, France.
authors.forename: Francesco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Giammarile
authors.affiliation: 1 Radiation Oncology Department, Cruces University Hospital/Biocruces Health Research Institute, Barakaldo, Spain.
authors.forename: Pedro
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Bilbao
authors.affiliation: 1 Radiation Oncology Department, Cruces University Hospital/Biocruces Health Research Institute, Barakaldo, Spain.
authors.forename: Francisco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Casquero
authors.affiliation: 8 fESTRO Radiation Oncology, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Vaudois (CHUV), Lausanne, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Berardino
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: de Bari
authors.affiliation: 6 Radiation Oncology Department, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, Bern, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Alan
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Dal Pra
mesh_terms: D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D019788:Fluorodeoxyglucose F18; D006258:Head and Neck Neoplasms / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D006801:Humans; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D000072078:Positron Emission Tomography Computed Tomography; D011379:Prognosis; D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals; D011880:Radiotherapy Planning, Computer-Assisted; D061089:Radiotherapy, Image-Guided
chemical_list: D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals; D019788:Fluorodeoxyglucose F18