Long-term Intense 18F-FDG Uptake by the Homeostatic Matrix-associated Inflammatory Response May Mimic Malignancy Recurrence.

A 70-year-old man underwent right upper lobectomy for lung adenocarcinoma. During the operation, hemostatic matrix (as known Floseal®) was used to prevent pulmonary laceration-associated bleeding. When 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) positron emission tomography/computed tomography was performed for staging after surgery, intense 18F-FDG uptake was observed in the cicatricial fibrotic tissue in the operation area, and no significant change was observed in that area during the 4-year follow-up. Because it remained stable for several years without treatment, this finding was thought to be due to a foreign body reaction caused by the homeostatic material.

Intraoperative freehand SPECT as an alternative imaging technique for use in radioguided parathyroidectomy.

Freehand single photon emission computed tomography (fhSPECT) is a technique that is used to monitor body's radioactivity intraoperatively. Accordingly, in this study, the feasibility of using fhSPECT for intraoperative 3D mapping in radioguided parathyroidectomy has been assessed. Patients, who were diagnosed with primary hyperparathyroidism consecutively, were scanned intraoperatively using fhSPECT to locate parathyroid adenomas before surgical procedure. The fhSPECT images were acquired intraoperatively using a declipse®SPECT device (SurgicEyeTM). The fhSPECT protocol could not be completed due to the technical problems in one patient. Parathyroid adenoma was located in the first patient with no lateral deviation. Nevertheless, a deviation of 8 mm was detected in the depth of the parathyroid adenoma, which is the distance of parathyroid adenoma from the skin. A 20 mm lateral deviation and a 10 mm deviation in depth were detected in the second patient. In the third patient, as was the case in the first patient, parathyroid adenoma was located with no lateral deviation. However, there was a 15 mm deviation in the depth of the parathyroid adenoma. A 5 mm lateral deviation was detected in the fourth patient yet with no deviation in the depth of parathyroid adenoma. Finally, neither lateral nor vertical deviation was detected in fifth patient. Based on the findings of this study, it was concluded that the fhSPECT technology can be helpful to a certain degree in locating the parathyroid adenoma. However, further studies are needed to support the findings of this preliminary study.

Clinical value of metabolic PET parameters of primary vulvar carcinoma.

PURPOSE: We aim to establish the prognostic value of metabolic parameters of the primary tumor in patients diagnosed with vulvar squamous cell carcinoma (VSCC) who underwent a pretreatment F-18 FDG PET/CT scan. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This retrospective study included 47 patients with a histopathologically confirmed diagnosis of VSCC, and who underwent a F-18 FDG PET/CT scan prior to treatment. The disease stage and age at diagnosis, and the maximum standardized uptake value (SUVmax), SUVmean, metabolic tumor volume (MTV) and total lesion glycolysis (TLG) values of the primary tumor, based on a baseline PET scan, were recorded. The relationship between these factors, and progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) was evaluated. RESULTS: The mean age of the 47 study patients was 69.6±1.9 years. Among the patients, 18 were in early stage of the disease and 29 were in the advanced stage. The age, and SUVmax, SUVmean, MTV and TLG values were statistically significantly associated with OS and PFS. Furthermore, it was noted that OS and PFS were significantly longer in the early stage patients than in the advanced stage patients, in patients with a tumor size <4cm than those with a tumor size ≥4cm, and in patients with a negative lymph node metastasis than those with a positive lymph node metastasis. CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that PET parameters are prognostic factors for VSCC. To the best of our knowledge, this study is the first to investigate the prognostic value of the PET parameters of primary tumors in patients with VSCC, and as such, we believe it contributes to literature.

PET Parameters are Useful in Predicting Endometrial Cancer Risk Classes and Prognosis.

AIM: We investigate the role of preoperative PET parameters to determine risk classes and prognosis of endometrial cancer (EC). METHODS: We enrolled 81 patients with EC who underwent preoperative F-18 FDG PET/CT. PET parameters (SUVmax, SUVmean, MTV, TLG), grade, histology and size of the primary tumor, stage of the disease, the degree of myometrial invasion (MI), and the presence of lymphovascular invasion (LVI), cervical invasion (CI), distant metastasis (DM) and lymph node metastasis (LNM) were recorded. The relationship between PET parameters, clinicopathological risk factors and overall survival (OS) was evaluated. RESULTS: The present study included 81 patients with EC (mean age 60). Of the total sample, 21 patients were considered low risk (endometrioid histology, stage 1A, grade 1 or 2, tumor diameter < 4 cm, and LVI negative) and 60 were deemed high risk. All of the PET parameters were higher in the presence of a high-risk state, greater tumor size, deep MI, LVI and stage 1B-4B. MTV and TLG values were higher in the patients with non-endometrioid histology, CI, grade 3 and LNM. The optimum cut-off levels for differentiating between the high and low risk patients were: 11.1 for SUVmax (AUC = 0.757), 6 for SUVmean (AUC = 0.750), 6.6 for MTV(AUC = 0.838) and 56.2 for TLG(AUC = 0.835). MTV and TLG values were found as independent prognostic factors for OS, whereas SUVmax and SUVmean values were not predictive. CONCLUSIONS: The PET parameters are useful in noninvasively differentiating between risk groups of EC. Furthermore, volumetric PET parameters can be predictive for OS of EC.

Unusual presentation of diffuse large B-cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in children: bilateral ureteral involvement.

Non-Hodgkin's lymphomas (NHL) are common malignant tumors in children and adolescents. Among them diffuse large B-cell lymphomas (DLBCL) are relatively rare as compared to non-cleaved small cell lymphoma (mostly Burkitt's-BL) and lymphoblastic lymphoma (LL). While BL has abdominal or cervical site predilection, LL (mostly T-cell) tends to have mediastinal involvement. However, diffuse large B-cell lymphomas may involve abdomen, peripheral lymph nodes, skin, bone, other rare sites. Ureteral NHLs are extremely rare in children; however, many cases have been reported in adults. In adults the histopathology is usually follicular lymphoma. Only one case of unilateral ureter DLBCL has been reported in an adolescent in the past. Here we report a case of bilateral ureteral DLBCL to highlight the unusual presentation of NHLs and that it should be considered in the differential diagnosis of acute renal insufficiency.

The Correlation of Clinicopathological Findings and Neutrophil-to-Lymphocyte and Platelet-to-Lymphocyte Ratios in Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma

Objectives: Inflammatory markers such as neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) have been recently introduced as potential biomarkers for tumor pathogenesis, development and prognosis in solid tumors. Our aim was to assess the correlation of clinicopathological features and NLR and PLR in patients with papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC). Methods: A total of 201 papillary thyroid carcinoma patients were divided into groups with a cut-off preoperative median NLR and PLR value of 1,92 and 123.9, respectively. The correlation of NLR and PLR and clinicopathological features including age, tumor size, extra-thyroidal extension, thyroid capsule invasion, surgical margin positivity, multifocality, bilaterality of the patients were analyzed. Results: The mean NLR and PLR were 2.11±0.94, 129.69±42.81, respectively. Larger tumor size and higher positivity of extra-thyroidal spread were correlated with higher NLR values. No significant relationship was found between NLR and age, presence of thyroid capsule invasion, surgical margin positivity, multifocality, bilaterality, and lymph node metastasis. Also no significant association was observed between the clinicopathological features and PLR. Conclusion: High NLR was found to correlate with tumor size and extra-thyroidal extension. NLR may be used as a marker to determine the clinical behavior of disease in patients with papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC).

False-positive I-131 Uptakes at Pulmonary Wedge-resection Site and Soft Tissue Lateral to the Femoral Heads in a Patient with Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma

A hyper-metabolic pulmonary nodule was detected on 18F-FDG PET/CT in a 65-year-old woman who had been followed up for 12 years without any complaints following treatment for papillary thyroid cancer (PTC). Wedge resection was performed to the pulmonary nodule and the pathologic examination revealed PTC metastasis. On the post-therapeutic I-131 scan after radioiodine treatment, focal I-131 uptake was detected at the site of pulmonary wedge resection. At first, this finding was thought to be related to the residual lesion but diagnostic CT demonstrated only focal traction bronchiectasis at that region. In addition, a false-positive I-131 uptake was also detected at the soft tissue just lateral to the femoral heads probably due to inflammation.

Splenosis of the Liver Capsule.

Splenosis, a form of ectopic splenic tissue, is generally caused by heterotopic autotransplantation of splenic tissues after traumatic splenic rupture or splenectomy. The implants are often localized intraperitoneally, mostly in the left upper quadrant and splenic region. Hepatic foci are seen only on rare occasions. The differential diagnosis of splenosis foci from malignant masses can be challenging by conventional imaging and lead to unnecessary invasive procedures. This manuscript presents radiological and scintigraphic images of splenosis foci located in the peritoneal cavity and liver capsule of a 46-year-old man who underwent splenectomy due to traumatic splenic rupture 30 years ago.

Unexpected False-positive I-131 Uptake in Patients with Differentiated Thyroid Carcinoma

Objective: Radioiodine is the most specific radionuclide for differentiated thyroid carcinoma (DTC) imaging. Despite its high specificity and sensitivity, false-positive I-131 uptake could be seen on whole body scan (WBS) that may lead to misdiagnosis and unnecessary radioiodine treatment. In this study, we aimed to present the I-131 WBS and concomitant single photon emission computed tomography/computed tomography (SPECT/CT) images of unexpected false-positive radioiodine uptake along with the patients' clinical outcomes and the contribution of SPECT/CT imaging. Methods: I-131 WBSs of 1507 patients with DTC were retrospectively reviewed, and anticipated I-131 uptakes (like in breasts or thymus) were excluded from the study. The unexpected false-positive I-131 uptakes with concomitant SPECT/CT imaging were included in the study. Results: Twenty-one patients had 23 unexpected I-131 uptakes on WBS and concomitant SPECT/CT imaging. The vast majority (87%) of these cases were seen on post-therapeutic I-131 WBS. Most of the false-positive I-131 uptakes could be explained by SPECT/CT and radiologic findings, and were secondary to non-thyroid conditions (bronchiectasis, lung infection, subcutaneous injection into gluteal fatty tissue, aortic calcification, benign bone cyst, vertebral hemangioma, recent non-thyroid surgical procedure site, rotator cuff injury, mature cystic teratoma and ovarian follicle cyst). However, the possible reasons of 9 false-positive I-131 uptakes could not be explained by radiologic findings. Conclusion: We suggest that false-positive I-131 uptake and its underlying mechanisms (inflammation, trapping, increased perfusion, etc.) must be kept in mind in patients with thyroid cancer and unexpected findings must be considered together with serum thyroglobulin levels, SPECT/CT and radiologic findings in order to avoid misdiagnosis and unnecessary radioiodine treatment.

18F-FDG PET/CT Findings of Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma Involving the Whole Genitourinary System

A sixty-two-year-old male patient underwent orchiectomy and was diagnosed with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma in the testicle and spermatic cord. 18F-FDG positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) scanning was performed for initial staging. 18F-FDG PET/CT scan revealed multiple hyper-metabolic lymphadenopathies, lung lesions and mass lesions in the adrenal glands and kidneys. In addition, diffuse increased 18F-FDG uptake suggesting lymphomatous infiltration on the right testicle, prostate and left testicular veins were detected. The genitourinary system involvement is extremely rare in extranodal lymphomas and to the best of our knowledge this is the first case in the literature having 18F-FDG accumulating lesions in all genitourinary system structures.

Early predictive value of baseline renal transplant scintigraphy in pediatric patients.

OBJECTIVES: The value of baseline renal transplant scintigraphy (RTS) with technetium-99m diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid (Tc-DTPA) performed within 2 days after transplantation in predicting early renal transplant outcome in pediatric recipients was assessed in this study. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Baseline RTS of 48 pediatric patients were studied retrospectively. Hilson's perfusion index, graft index (GI), time between peak perfusion and iliac artery (ΔP), and the ratios of peak perfusion to plateau (P : Pl), to peak iliac artery (P : A), and to peak uptake (P : U) were obtained. In 14 patients younger than 9 years old, because of faint visualization of iliac artery, the perfusion indices and GI could not be calculated. The 'Bedside Schwartz' formula was used for calculation of follow-up estimated glomerular filtrate rate (eGFR) values. The need for dialysis in the first week or decreasing serum creatinine of less than 10%/day during 3 consecutive days after the transplantation was accepted as delayed graft function (DGF). The patients, whose creatinine reduction ratio was less than 70% on day 7 after transplantation without DGF, were accepted as slow graft function (SGF). RESULTS: The means of GI, P : U, and Hilson's perfusion index were significantly high in SGF/DGF (n=10). GI and P : U had very high accuracy in the diagnosis of DGF/SGF (area under the curve>0.90). A strong correlation was found between P : U and same day and between GI and day 15 eGFR values. GI, P : U, and P : A were significant for the prediction of follow-up eGFR of less than 60 ml/min/1.73 m. GI was more accurate than the others. CONCLUSION: Our experience in this study underlines the importance of RTS, especially with the use of GI and P : U, which are very valuable in diagnosing DGF/SGF and predicting early transplant outcome in pediatric recipients.

Contribution of SPECT/CT to Evaluate Urinary Leakage Suspicion in Renal Transplant Patients.

It is known that renal scintigraphy is the best imaging modality in the diagnosis of urinary leakage. Usually, only planar images are diagnostic but sometimes they are unclear when urinoma is small and adjacent to kidney or bladder. In other respects, planar images can be false-positive in the case of increased blood flow of abdominal wall. We suggested using SPECT/CT in differential diagnosis. An atlas of SPECT/CT is presented, which includes 3 cases that urinoma was diagnosed by SPECT/CT, which were unclear on planar images, and one case that urinary leakage suspicion on planar image was ruled out by SPECT/CT.

Two Different Causes of Decreased Activity on Ipsilateral Iliac Artery in Renal Transplant Scintigraphy.

In 2 patients, perfusion images of renal transplant scintigraphy showed similarly decreased activity on ipsilateral iliac artery. One's graft was photopenic because of arterial thrombosis. However, the other's graft had sufficient perfusion and no abnormality in iliac arteries, but he had femoral arteriovenous graft for hemodialysis on the contralateral side. So, in this patient, decreased activity on ipsilateral iliac artery was probably related to increased arterial flow of the contralateral side. It should be considered that decreased activity on ipsilateral iliac artery in perfusion images is not only due to ipsilateral problem; the cause could be on the contralateral side.

Management of Childhood Thyroid Nodules: Surgical and Endocrinological Findings in a Large Group of Cases.

OBJECTIVE: The management of childhood thyroid nodules is still a big challenge for clinicians. In this study, we aimed to present our surgical and endocrinological experience in more than one hundred pediatric cases. METHODS: A retrospective analysis of patients admitted with a thyroid nodule between 2006 and 2014 was performed. Detailed ultrasonography and fine-needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB) were the cornerstones of the diagnostic approach. RESULTS: One hundred-three children (72 female, 31 male) with a mean age of 13.1±3.6 years (3-18 years) were admitted to our center. Management strategy was surgery in 58 patients and follow-up in 45 patients. Mean nodule size was 17±12.7 mm (2-45 mm). The diagnoses were listed as benign solitary nodule (48 patients), thyroid carcinoma (26 patients), multinodular goiter (23 patients), Hashimoto thyroiditis (4 patients), and Graves' disease (2 patients). Surgical procedures were nodulectomy/lobectomy (32 patients), total thyroidectomy (TT) (13 patients), or TT+ neck dissection (13 patients). The rate of malignancy was 25% in the total group and 44% in the surgery group. The malignancy rate was higher in patients younger than 12 years compared to older children (41% vs. 17%, p=0.040). Metastasis was seen in 38% of the malignant nodules. Postoperative complications were transient hypocalcemia (8%), permanent hypocalcemia (1.7%), and unilateral vocal cord paralysis (1.7%). Recurrence or mortality was not encountered in the 5.4±1.2-year follow-up period. CONCLUSION: Thyroid nodule in a child requires an aggressive diagnostic approach due to increased risk of malignancy and metastasis. Intraoperative frozen section examination must be done as a useful adjunct to determine the surgical strategy. Incidence of complications is small in thyroid surgery when performed by experienced surgeons.

Risk factors for persistent disease in papillary thyroid carcinoma with lymph node metastasis.

PURPOSE: It is known that the presence of neck lymph node (LN) metastasis is correlated with persistent disease in papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) patients. After appropriate therapy, most patients become disease free, whereas some may still have persistent disease. The present study aimed to determine the potential variables affecting the clinical course of the disease and persistent disease patterns in PTC patients with LN metastasis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study group included consecutive PTC patients with LN metastasis. Clinicopathological characteristics and persistent disease pattern during the follow-up period were examined to identify risk factors for persistent disease using univariate and multivariate analyses. RESULTS: At the end of a median follow-up of 84 months, 90 (69%) patients became disease free and 40 (31%) patients had persistent disease. Univariate analysis showed that male sex, older age at initial diagnose (≥45 years), larger tumor size (>4 cm), presence of lateral cervical LN metastasis, extrathyroidal invasion, and higher number of metastatic LN (≥10) were significant predictors for persistent disease. Multivariate analysis showed that extrathyroidal involvement, presence of lateral cervical LN metastasis, and older age at initial diagnosis (≥45 years) were independent predictors for persistent disease. CONCLUSION: Despite the presence of LN involvement, most patients may become disease free with therapy. Patients with extrathyroidal invasion, lateral cervical LN involvement, and those at least 45 years old at initial diagnosis are more likely to have persistent disease. However, disease control can be achieved with close clinical follow-up and therapy.

A New Quantitative Index for Baseline Renal Transplant Scintigraphy With 99mTc-DTPA in Evaluation of Delayed Graft Function and Prediction of 1-Year Graft Function.

PURPOSE: The aims of this study were to assess quantitative indices of baseline renal transplant scintigraphy (RTS) with Tc-DTPA for evaluation of delayed graft function (DGF) and prediction of 1-year graft function and to describe a new inclusive index for RTS. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A total of 179 patients to whom RTS with Tc-DTPA was performed within 2 days after kidney transplantation were analyzed retrospectively. Hilson perfusion index, perfusion time (ΔP), peak-to-plateau ratio, peak perfusion-to-iliac artery ratio, T½ of graft washout, peak perfusion-to-uptake ratio, and ratio of uptake at 20 to 3 minutes (R20/3) were obtained. In addition, we first described the following formula defined as graft index (GI): GI = (ΔP × arterial peak × plateau)/(perfusion peak × uptake at 3 minutes). At 1 year, a serum creatinine level of more than 1.5 mg/dL was considered to be abnormal. Mann-Whitney U, Spearman coefficient of correlation test, and receiver operating characteristic curve were used for statistical analyses. P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. RESULTS: Mean values of all the indices were significant. The most accurate, sensitive, and specific index for both identification of DGF and prediction of 1-year serum creatinine level of more than 1.5 mg/dL was GI. Area under the curve of GI was 0.94 for identification of DGF and 0.79 for 1-year prediction. CONCLUSIONS: The question is, "Which index is the best indicator?" This study demonstrated that the parameters of ΔP, plateau, arterial peak, perfusion peak, and uptake at 3 minutes of RTS could be assessed together by the formula of GI, which provides more accurate information to identify DGF and predict 1-year graft function.

False-Positive 131I Uptake in a Benign Bone Lesion on Post-therapy Scan.

A 56-year-old woman underwent near-total thyroidectomy and papillary thyroid carcinoma without extrathyroidal extension was diagnosed. The serum thyroglobulin (Tg) level was 2.4 µg/L, and anti-Tg was negative when serum thyroid-stimulating hormone level was 85 µIU/mL. She received 100 mCi (3.7 GBq) of 131I. Besides the residual thyroid tissue, a focal uptake in the left clavicular bone was seen on posttherapy 131I images. Then, CT and MRI were performed to diagnosis. All imaging findings suggested that it was a benign bone cyst. At 6-month follow-up, the serum Tg level was undetectable with the thyroid-stimulating hormone level of more than 150 µIU/mL.

18F-FDG and 18F-NaF PET/CT Findings of a Multiple Myeloma Patient With Thyroid Cartilage Involvement.

Thyroid cartilage is a very rare extramedullary involvement location in multiple myeloma. We present both F-NaF and F-FDG PET/CT findings of a multiple myeloma patient with thyroid cartilage involvement. In this patient, increased FDG and more intensely increased NaF uptake were seen on thyroid cartilage. In addition, some bone lesions had more intense NaF than FDG uptake, and some were only NaF avid. Although F-FDG PET/CT has an important role in plasma cell neoplasms, we considered that F-NaF PET/CT is also very useful to detect small lytic lesions that might be overlooked on F-FDG PET/CT.

A Clear Cell Variant of Papillary Thyroid Microcarcinoma With Lung, Bone, and Soft Tissue Metastases.

A 56-year-old woman presented with a mass lesion on the right occipital bone underwent total resection of the tumor. An adenocarcinoma with immunostaining positive for thyroid transcription factor-1 and thyroglobulin was found. An ultrasound/thyroid scan detected a hot nodule of 9 mm in the right lobe. Fine needle biopsy revealed the similar histological findings with the previous bone resection material. Then, a total thyroidectomy was performed. Histopathologic examination revealed clear cell variant of papillary thyroid microcarcinoma. She received 7.4 GBq of I. On posttherapy scan, metastatic focuses were seen in the left lung and soft tissue between the left paravertebral muscles.

Evaluation of Renal Transplant Scintigraphy and Resistance Index Performed Within 2 Days After Transplantation in Predicting Long-Term Graft Function.

PURPOSE: Value of renal transplant scintigraphy and resistance index (RI) in the assessment of renal graft function is well known. The aim of this study was to evaluate the predictive value of renal transplant scintigraphy and RI for long-term graft function. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 119 patients were analyzed retrospectively. Renal transplant scintigraphy with technetium Tc 99 m DTPA and color Doppler ultrasonography for RI were performed to each patient within 2 days after transplantation. Resistance index and the results of the tests in perfusion/renographic curve analysis of scintigraphy were compared with the serum creatinine (sCr) levels at 3 months, 1 year, and 5 years after transplantation. A sCr level of more than 1.5 mg/dL was considered abnormal. RESULTS: Differences of the mean values of T½ of graft washout (GW½), time difference between peak renal perfusion and arterial count ([INCREMENT]P), and accumulation index (R20/3) were significantly high in patients with high follow-up sCr (>1.5 mg/dL) (P < 0.01). The correlation of these tests with the follow-up sCr levels was significant (P < 0.01). The number of recipients with high perfusion curve grade was also significant in the follow-up groups with high sCr levels. However, difference of the mean value of RI was insignificant between the follow-up groups, and there was no correlation between the RI and sCr levels. CONCLUSION: Renal transplant scintigraphy performed within 2 days after transplantation is useful in the prediction of long-term graft function at 3 months, 1 year, and 5 years; and it is superior to resistance index.