Comparative study of the most commonly-used radiopharmaceuticals for PSMA prostate PET/CT imaging.

Prostate cancer (PCa) is one of the most common malignancies and cause of cancer death in men. Prostate-specific antigen (PSA) is the most used biomarker in the detection of early PCa. Lately, scientists have been using prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA), a glycol-protein that is over-expressed in PCa cells in positron emission tomography/ computed tomography (PET/CT) scans to detect PCa. Gallium-68-PSMA radiotracers, such as 68Ga-PSMA-11, 68Ga-PSMA-617 and 68Ga-PSMA I&T, were firstly introduced in 2011 and fluorine-18-PSMA based radiotracers followed with 18F-PSMA-1007,N-[N-[(S)-1,3-dicarboxypropyl]carbamoyl]- 4-18F-fluorobenzyl-L-cysteine(18F-DCFBC) and 2-(3-(1-carboxy-5-[(6-[18F]fluoro-pyridine-3-carbonyl)-amino]-pentyl)-ureido)- pentanedioic acid (18F-DCFPyL), also known as PYLARIFY, being the most used and showed superior results compared to conventional imaging techniques. Differences depending on half-life, clearance and normal organ uptake are being detected through research to determine which of the radiotracers, is the most suitable for each patient. Two of them, 68Ga-PSMA-11 and PLYRIFY, have already been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The future of hybrid imaging for PCa is very promising if we consider the advantages of PSMA radiotracers compared to non-PSMA radioligands.

A proposed index of diffuse bone marrow [18F]-FDG uptake and PET skeletal patterns correlate with myeloma prognostic markers, plasma cell morphology, and response to therapy.

PURPOSE: The investigation of a semi-quantitative index in the pelvis to assess for diffuse bone marrow (BM) [18F]-FDG uptake and the investigation of PET skeletal patterns in multiple myeloma (MM) patients, in accordance with prognostic markers, clonal plasma cell (cPC) morphology, and response to therapy. METHODS: We prospectively analyzed [18F]-FDG PET/CT in 90 MM patients (newly diagnosed, 60; relapsed/refractory, 30). Among other PET/CT parameters, we calculated the ratio SUVmax pelvis/liver and examined for correlations with known MM prognostic parameters, cPC morphology (good vs. low/intermediate differentiation), and response to therapy. RESULTS: SUVmax pelvis/liver ratio was significantly lower for the group of good differentiation vs. intermediate/low differentiation cPCs (p < 0.001) and showed a positive correlation with BM infiltration rate, ß2 microglobulin, serum ferritin, international staging system (ISS), and revised ISS; no significant correlation was found with hemoglobin. A cutoff value of 1.1 showed an excellent specificity (99%) and high sensitivity (76%) for diffuse BM involvement (AUC 0.94; p < 0.001). Mixed pattern and appendicular involvement correlated with poor prognostic features while normal pattern, found in 30% of patients, correlated with good prognostic features. Presence of ≥ 10 focal lesions negatively predicted for overall response (p < 0.05; OR 4.8). The CT component improved the diagnostic performance of PET. CONCLUSION: This study showed, for the first time, that cPC morphology and markers related with MM biology, correlate with SUVmax pelvis/liver index, which could be used as a surrogate marker for BM assessment and disease prognosis; PET patterns correlate with MM prognostic features and response rates.

Non-Oncological PET/CT imaging during SARS-CoV-2 pandemic.

In December 2019 a new ß-CoV, Severe Acute Respiratory Coronavirus- 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has been identified in Wuhan Hubei Province, China. Within a few months it spread rapidly to more than 114 countries and the disease, Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), was declared pandemic on 11th February 2020 by the World Health Organization (WHO). Until 20 June 2020 8:09 am, 8,465,085 cases of COVID-19 were confirmed globally, with 454,258 deaths. The first incidence in Greece was documented on 26 February 2020 in Thessaloniki and up to 20 June 2020 8:09 am, 3,227 confirmed cases of COVID-19 were reported, with 188 deaths. At the time of writing USA and Brazil, are the countries with the highest disease burden. Governments have imposed a variety of suggestions and restrictions in order to control the spread of the virus, focusing mainly on social distancing, self-isolation, personal hygiene and personal protective equipment (PPE). Greece was one of the countries that implemented early drastic measures thus succeeding in controlling the virus transmission; having a profound economical effect though.

Quality & safety aspects of nuclear medicine practice: Definitions and review of the current literature.

Current literature records a glaring discrepancy between the rapid developments and progress of medicine and the simultaneous deterioration of the quality and safety of the provided health care services. Bibliographic data as far as perceptions of quality and safety in nuclear medicine departments are concerned, are limited and frequently ambiguous. Most nuclear medicine departments provide the same types of services, but not the same quality of service, while patients' perceptions are not always matched by the perceptions of health care providers. The multidimensional nature of quality and safety, deriving from the different criteria and standards by which different groups of the population attempt to interpret and evaluate them, justifies these discrepancies, over most of quality's and safety's dimensions studied. Nuclear medicine's unique characteristic of using radiopharmaceuticals, exposing to ionizing radiation affects dramatically these perceptions, irrespective of whether quality and safety assurance measures already cover radiation protection, instrumentation maintenance, radiopharmaceutical handling, and the management of all the other aspects of patient care. On the other end of the spectrum, patient-centred practice, communication and proper information play as a well decisive role in ensuring patients' satisfaction.

Abdominal scanning with technetium-99m pertechnetate localizes ectopic gastric mucosa in the jejunum: case report and review of the literature.

A 16-year-old male patient was admitted to hospital because of a fainting episode which was accompanied by diarrhoea that was dark red. All investigations were normal except a low haematocrit, a technetium-99m pertechnetate abdominal scan, which showed a large area of moderate activity in the upper left abdomen, and digital subtraction angiography, which showed bleeding in the same area where the abnormal finding on the pertechnetate scan was found. Ectopic gastric mucosa and a deep ulcer in an otherwise normal jejunum were found during the urgent exploratory laparotomy.