PET/CT WITH THE APPLICATION OF 18F-FLUOROCHOLINE - THE FIRST EXPERIENCE WITH THERAPY RESPONSE ASSESSMENT AFTER TRANS-ARTERIAL EMBOLISATION OFTHE HEPATOCELLULAR CARCINOMA
Abstract
Aim. To evaluate an early experience with 18F-FCH-PET/CT in the therapy response assessments after trans-arterial embolisations of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).
Method. The sample 18F-FCH-PET/ CT examinations was assessed in five men (mean age 69.6 years range 59-83) suffered from HCC after trans-arterial embolisation.
All examinations were performed after intravenous administration of 18F-gluorocholine in the dose of 2 MBq per kilogram of body weight, the full diagnostic dual-phase MDCT forms the integral part of the examination. The vascularisation and the radio-pharmaceutical accumulation were assessed.
Results. The well differentiated HCC was present in all patients.
Signs of the recurrence were found in four men, hyper-metabolic all of them, in three, joined with hyper-vascularisation. But the increased 18F-FCH uptake was depicted in area less than one third of hypervascularized tissue.
Hypo-vascularized hyper-metabolic viable tissue of HCC was found in one patient. Newly developed HCC foci were found in two patients.
Conclusion. 18F-FCH-PET/CT is useful tool in the therapy response assessments in interventional therapy of HCC; information obtained about metabolism activity is more precise than evaluations based only on morphological information of CT.