Developing of an eco-friendly liquid-liquid microextraction method by using menthol-based hydrophobic deep eutectic solvent for determination of basic fuchsin dye: assessment of the greenness profile.

Herein, we aimed to develop a new environmentally friendly liquid-liquid microextraction (LLME) method based on hydrophobic deep eutectic solvent (hDES) synthesized using biodegradable dl-menthol and decanoic acid for the spectrophotometric determination of toxic basic fuchsin dye in environmental water samples. The parameters affecting the extraction efficiency such as pH, mole ratio, and volume of hDES (1:2) and type and volume of organic solvent, sample volume, times of vortex, ultrasonic bath and centrifuge, ionic strength, and matrix effect were investigated and optimized. Under optimal conditions, the calibration curve showed linearity in the range of 7.4-167 µg L-1 with a coefficient of determination of 0.9994. The limit of detection, intra-day and inter-day precision, and recovery values were 2.25 µg L-1, 2.46% and 4.45%, and 105 ± 3%, respectively. The preconcentration and enrichment factors were found to be 30 and 61.5, respectively. The proposed hDES-LLME methodology was successfully applied to the environmental water samples to detect toxic BF dye (95-105%). Finally, the ecological impact of the suggested method was evaluated using the analytical eco-scale (PPS:88), complementary green analytical procedure indexe (ComplexGAPI), and the Analytical GREEnness tool (0.63). The assessment results showed that the presented analytical method can be regarded as a green LLME approach for the determination of the BF in water.

Correlation between Prostate Cancer Positive Cores and 68Ga-PSMA Distribution in Prostate Gland.

INTRODUCTION: The purpose of our study was to evaluate reliability of 68Ga-labeled prostate-specific membrane antigen positron emission tomography (68Ga-PSMA PET/CT) and identify appropriate SUVmax cutoff values in order to use for diagnosis, especially in patients remained clinically suspicious for prostate cancer (PCa). METHODS: Eighty-four patients applied 68Ga-PSMA PET/CT subsequent to transrectal ultrasound-guided prostate biopsy (TRUS-bx) involved in this study retrospectively. 68Ga-PSMA PET/CT imagings were analyzed by a nuclear medicine physician, and region of interests were drawn manually in prostate diagrams including 6 segments for each patient. These marked diagrams were analyzed with histopathology reports TRUS-bx. 504 segments were grouped with Gleason scoring system, and all groups were compared with mean SUVmax values. RESULTS: Mean SUVmax value of Gleason grade group 1 (GG1, n: 352 segments) was 6.6 (±4.6) and significantly lower than the other groups (p < 0.001). No significant difference was detected within GG2-5 groups (p > 0.05). According to receiver operating characteristic curve analysis, SUVmax cutoff values were 1.0 (AUC: 0.961) for tumor detection, yielding a sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value of 99.4%, 92.1%, 96.5%, 98%, respectively, and 4.2 (AUC: 0.853) for detection of clinically significant PCa with 88.8%, 62.4%, 84.5%, and 71%, respectively. Although tumor percentage of biopsy core and Gleason group were correlated with SUVmax uptake, but patient age was not. CONCLUSION: 68Ga-PSMA PET appears to be a reliable option for diagnosis and disease management in PCa and can be considered especially in discrimination of csPCa, and patients remained suspicious for disease.

Therapeutic potential of hesperidin: Apoptosis induction in breast cancer cell lines.

Hesperidin is a flavonoid commonly found in citrus fruits. Studies have shown that hesperidin has anti-inflammatory, analgesic, and antimicrobial properties, as well as its effectiveness in carcinogenesis. In this paper, we aim to investigate the molecular mechanisms of hesperidin-induced apoptosis in MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 cancer cells. The inhibitory effect of hesperidin on cellular proliferation was evaluated with the MTT assay. Cell cycle analysis of hesperidin-treated cells was then performed, as well as immunocytochemical analysis of the effect on the apoptosis pathway (TUNEL, Bax, and Bcl-2 expression). Moreover, hesperidin induced cellular apoptosis in MCF-7 breast cancer cells by inhibiting Bcl-2 and enhancing Bax expression at protein levels. On the other hand, hesperidin caused apoptosis in the MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cell line, but it did not activate the Bax/Bcl-2 pathway. Hesperidin also induced cell cycle arrest at the S phase in the MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 cell lines. These findings showed that hesperidin is a potential therapeutic candidate for preventing the progression of breast cancer. In addition, hesperidin could significantly stimulate the death mechanisms in ER/PR (+) MCF-7 cells by changing the expression balance of Bax and Bcl-2 proteins, but lead ER/PR (-) MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells to apoptosis in a different way.

Comprehensive natural radioactivity and pollution risk assessments of aquatic media and sediment in Lake Van (Türkiye).

This paper studies the radionuclide (137Cs, 226Ra, 232Th, 40K) activity concentrations and gross radioactivities in waters and sediments of Lake Van, which is the third largest closed lake (with no natural or artificial outlet) within the Earth. The physico-chemical parameters were measured and evaluated in the lake waters. The mean gross α activities in surface, middle and bottom waters are 0.04, 0.03 and 0.03 Bq/L, respectively, and in the same order, the mean gross ß activities are 0.30, 0.23 and 0.33 Bq/L, respectively. In sediment samples, the mean activity concentrations were measured as 1.98 Bq/g for gross-α, 3.46 Bq/g for gross-ß, 48.3 Bq/kg for 226Ra, 32.0 Bq/kg for 232Th, 540.1 Bq/kg for 40K and 25.9 Bq/kg for 137Cs. The radiation hazard parameters values based on the measured activities were calculated and Raeq values are lower than the world average value in all samples, while Dout and AED values are relatively high in some sediment samples.

Mass-like Appearance on 18F-FDG PET/CT: Cascade Stomach.

A 56-year-old female patient who had involuntary weight loss underwent 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) for detection of malignancy. The scan revealed non-metabolic soft tissue density in the posterior wall of the stomach requiring endoscopy. Endoscopical examination was performed 9 days after PET/CT and cascade stomach was detected. Cascade stomach is a rare entity that can be diagnosed by radiographic barium evaluations and endoscopy, the appearance on CT is largely incidental and CT has rarely been relied on for the diagnosis. We present this incidental case of cascade stomach on PET/CT to be familiar with the appearance.

Prognostic impact of the psoas muscle index, a parameter of sarcopenia, in patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma treated with rituximab-based chemoimmunotherapy.

Muscle mass, defined as the psoas muscle index (PMI), is an important parameter of sarcopenia and it has been shown to be a prognostic factor of non-hematological cancers. This study aimed to investigate the prognostic impact of sarcopenia defined using PMI measurement in patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma treated with R-CHOP. We retrospectively investigated the impact of pretreatment PMI on survival and response to treatment. One hundred and twenty patients with DLBCL were included in the study, of whom 65 had baseline sarcopenia according to the defined PMI cutoffs. Sarcopenic patients displayed a worse response to treatment compared with non-sarcopenic patients. In a multivariate analysis, sarcopenia remained predictive of outcomes for overall survival (p = .009), progression free survival (p = .028), and response to treatment (p = .006). Sarcopenia defined by evaluating PMI is a simple and routinely applicable method that can predict poor outcomes in patients with DLBCL.

Cu2O-CuO ball like/multiwalled carbon nanotube hybrid for fast and effective ultrasound-assisted solid phase extraction of uranium at ultra-trace level prior to ICP-MS detection.

Multiwalled carbon nanotube/Cu2O-CuO ball like hybrid material (MWCNTs/Cu2O-CuO) synthesized using of a green hydrothermal process was evaluated as a new sorbent for solid phase extraction of uranium with inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). According to our best knowledge, this new material was synthesized and used as solid phase extraction adsorbent for the first time in the literature. The characterization of new hybrid material was carried out using Raman spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electronic microscopy techniques (SEM, SEM-EDX and SEM-Mapping). The characterization results demonstrated that the new hybrid nanostructure was successfully obtained. The ultrasound-assisted solid phase extraction (UA-SPE) procedure was performed using 100 mg of new hybrid sorbent, 1000 µL of a 0.1% (w/v) solution of α-benzoin oxime and 2000 µL of phosphate buffer at pH 7.0 for separation and preconcentration of uranium. Uranium was eluted with 2 M HCl and the levels of uranium was measured by using ICP-MS. The linearity was observed between 2.5 and 100 ng mL-1 concentration range with a good correlation coefficient (r = 0.999, n = 7). The obtained limit of detection and quantitation values were 0.52 and 1.70 ng mL-1, respectively. Under optimum conditions, the preconcentration factor (PF) was calculated as 13.3. The accuracy of the developed method was assessed by analyzing of TMDA-62.2, TMDA-70.2 (Environment Canada) and GBW-07423 certified reference water and soil materials. The proposed UA-SPE-ICP-MS procedure developed with MWCNTs/Cu2O-CuO hybrid material was successfully applied to the analysis of uranium at ultra-traces levels in environmental water and geological rock samples.

Raman spectroscopy: A novel experimental approach to evaluating cisplatin induced tissue damage.

The aim of this work is to clarify the effect of curcumin and beta-carotene on cisplatin-induced tissue damage and to demonstrate the potential of Raman spectroscopy to detect tissue changes consistent with liver and kidney histopathology as a potential diagnostic adjunct. In the study, 56 Wistar albino female rats were used and randomly divided into 7 groups (n:8). Sham group received only sesame oil; Cisplatin group, received a single dose injection of cisplatin; Beta-carotene group, treated with beta-carotene orally; Cisplatin + Beta-carotene group, pretreated with beta-carotene 30 min prior to the cisplatin injection, then received cisplatin; Curcumin group, orally treated with curcumin; Cisplatin + Curcumin group, pretreated with curcumin 30min prior to the cisplatin injection, then received cisplatin. The second application was performed 1 week after the first application. One of the liver and kidney tissues was taken to 10% form for histopathological examinations and the others were taken to -80 °C for raman spectroscopy. Received sections were hematoxylin-eosin stained. The avidin-biotin peroxidase method was used for to investigate anti-TNF-α and IL1-ß activities. TUNEL method was applied to determine apoptotic cells. According to our histopathological findings, beta-carotene and especially curcumin have been found to possess hepatorenal protective activities. These datas were supported by the microscopic damage scores. Although some of these findings were observed in both the cisplatin + curcumin and cisplatin + beta-carotene groups, the incidence and severity of histopathological lesions were less than the cisplatin group. Both immunohistochemical studies and Raman spectroscopy results consistent with histopathological examination of hematoxylen-eosin stained sections. Raman spectroscopy represents a suitable tool to provide insights into structural factors involved in the mechanisms underlying antitumor effects of platinum drug.

Heterogeneous 68Ga-Prostate-Specific Membrane Antigen Uptake in the Left Upper Abdomen: Mesenchymal Tumor.

A 50-year-old man with recently diagnosed prostate adenocarcinoma was referred for whole-body Ga-prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) PET/CT scan for staging. Apart from some nonspecific findings, Ga-PSMA PET/CT revealed large soft tissue mass in the left upper abdomen showing heterogeneous tracer uptake. Histological examination of the mass was interpreted as gastrointestinal/extragastrointestinal stromal tumor by pathologists. Prostate-specific membrane antigen is considered specific for prostate cancer cells, although PSMA activity has been described in many other benign or malign conditions. That is why PSMA uptake in uncommon locations for prostate cancer metastasis must be considered for second malignancies or other benign conditions.

The role of F-18 FDG PET/CT in differentiating benign from malignant pulmonary masses and accompanying lymph nodes.

INTRODUCTION: The aim of this study was to evaluate the usefulness of SUVmax and lesion size to differentiate benign and malignant lesions of the lung and accompanying mediastinal lymph node on F-18 FDG PET/CT imaging. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A retrospective analysis was carried out on 100 patients with suspected lung cancer who were recommended for PET/CT scans for diagnosis and staging. The results of the SUVmax, lesion size and patient's age were compared with histopathology which was considered to be the 'gold standard' and sensitivity and specificity were calculated respectively. Lymph nodes greater than 1 cm in patients with benign pathology were evaluated and the SUVmax values were recorded. RESULT: Of the 100 patients, 38 were found to have benign, whereas 62 had malignant on histopathology. The SUVmax was significantly more elevated in malign masses (13.1 ± 6.4) than in benign masses (8 ± 5.7) (p< 0.05). The dimensions of malignant masses (4.5 ± 2.5 cm) were larger than benign ones (3 ± 1.6 cm) (p< 0.05). SUVmax of 7.6 was determined as the cut-off value, while the sensitivity and specificity were 82% and 55% respectively. The sensitivity was 87% and specificity was 45% for the lesion sizes in differentiation of the malignant and benign lesions. CONCLUSIONS: There are significant overlaps between benign and malignant lesions and specialists must be aware of the various pathological conditions that can give false positives and negatives.

Atypical Appearance on Thyroid Scintigraphy: Achalasia.

We report the case of a 49-year-old woman with achalasia in whom thyroid stimulating hormone supression was incidentally detected on routine blood tests and who therefore underwent thyroid scintigraphy. Thyroid scan demonstrated low intensity diffuse technetium Tc sodium pertechnetate accumulation inferior to thyroid gland. After correlating the images with her previous barium esophagogram, tracer accumulation caudal to thyroid gland was explained on the presumption of Tc sodium pertechnetate retention within the dilated esophagus.

Vortex assisted deep eutectic solvent (DES)-emulsification liquid-liquid microextraction of trace curcumin in food and herbal tea samples.

We developed a new microextraction method for separation and preconcentration of curcumin using deep eutectic solvent known as green solvent. Deep eutectic solvent (DES) formed by mixing of choline chloride and phenol was used as an extraction solvent in microextraction study to extract the curcumin at pH 4.0. The curcumin concentration in enriched DES phase was analyzed by UV-Visible spectrophotometer. The effect of parameters such as pH, mol ratio of DES composition, volume of DES, volume of tetrahydrofuran (THF) and sample volume were examined. Interference effects of matrix components were investigated. The preconcentration factor was 12.5. The detection limit of method (n = 10) was 2.86 µg L-1 and the relative standard deviation (RSD, n = 8) was 1.8%. The method was successfully applied to determination of curcumin in food and herbal tea samples. The mean recoveries were between 96% and 102% and standard deviations were found in the range of 1-6%.

The value of 18FDG PET/CT parameters, hematological parameters and tumor markers in predicting KRAS oncogene mutation in colorectal cancer.

OBJECTIVE: In this study we investigated the predictive value of maximum standardized uptake value (SUVmax), metabolic tumor volume (MTV), total lesion glycolysis (TLG), neutrophils/lymphocytes ratio (NLR), platelets/lymphocytes ratio (PLR), carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) and carbohydrate antigen (CA 19-9) in the prediction of KRAS gene mutation which plays an important role in the choice of treatment in colorectal cancer patients. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: A total of 55 cases with untreated colorectal cancer who had undergone both PET/CT examinations for initial staging and also mutation analysis of KRAS oncogene were studied. Fluorine-18-FDG PET/CT parameters (SUVmax, MTV, TLG), hematological parameters (NLR, PLR), and tumor markers (CEA, CA 19-9) were recorded and the relationship between these parameters and KRAS oncogene mutation was evaluated using receiver operating characteristics (ROC) analysis and multiple logistic regression analysis. RESULTS: In 20 cases mutations in the KRAS gene were detected, while in 35 cases mutations were not observed (wild-type). ROC analysis revealed that SUVmax, MTV, TLG, NLR, PLR, and CA 19-9 could not predict mutations in KRAS oncogene (P=0.600, 0.263, 0.214, 0.057, 0.104, 0.189, respectively) although CEA value showed signi..cant difference (P=0.031) but without high value of the area under the curve (0.676). Multivariate logistic regression analysis also did not show significant association between KRAS gene mutations and SUVmax, MTV, TLG, NLR, PLR, CEA, CA 19-9 values. CONCLUSION: We observed that in patients with colorectal cancers, we cannot predict KRAS gene mutations using PET/CT parameters (SUVmax, MTV, TLG), hematological parameters (NLR, PLR) or tumor marker CA 19-9. We detected a significant but not very strong association only between CEA and KRAS mutations.

Efficacy of 18F-2-fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose Positron Emission Tomography/Computerized Tomography for Bone Marrow Infiltration Assessment in the Initial Staging of Lymphoma.

OBJECTIVE: Currently 18F-2-fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose (18F-FDG) positron emission tomography/computerized tomography (PET/CT) is being successfully used for staging and follow-up of Hodgkin's lymphoma (HL) and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL). Various studies have demonstrated that PET/CT effectively detects bone marrow involvement (BMI) and is concordant with bone marrow biopsy (BMB) findings, thus it is deemed as a complementary method. This study was aimed to evaluate18F-FDG-PET/CT efficiency for detection of BMI in HL and NHL. METHODS: The study included 172 lymphoma cases who were admitted to Akdeniz University Medical School Department of Nuclear Medicine for initial staging with PET/CT. Visual and semiquantitative assessments were performed for PET/CT scan findings of the cases. The maximum standard uptake (SUVmax) value was the quantitative parameter used for 18F-FDG-PET scan. In visual assessment, bone marrow metabolic activity that is greater than the liver was considered as pathologic. For semiquantitative assessment, regions of interest were drawn for SUVmax estimation, which included iliac crest in cases with diffusely increased metabolic activity and the highest activity area in cases with focal involvement. BMB was considered as the reference test. RESULTS: On visual assessment of all the cases, PET/CT was found to yield 31% sensitivity and 85% specificity rate for detection of BMI. On visual assessment of HL cases, sensitivity rate was determined as 80%, and specificity as 78%, while in NHL cases the corresponding values were 24% and 90%, respectively. On semiquantitative assessment of HL cases, considering SUVmax≥4, sensitivity was found as 80% and specificity as 68%. In NHL patients, considering SUVmax≥3.2, sensitivity rate was detected as 65% and specificity as 58%. CONCLUSION: In this study, a moderately high concordance was observed between PET/CT and BMB findings. PET/CT appears to be a significant method for detecting BMI. Although PET/CT is not a substitute for BMB, we suggest it can be used as a guide to biopsy site and a complementary imaging technique for BMB.

Correlation of Minimum Apparent Diffusion Coefficient and Maximum Standardized Uptake Value of the Primary Tumor with Clinicopathologic Characteristics in Endometrial Cancer.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the correlation of the primary tumor's maximum standardized uptake value (SUVmax) and minimum apparent diffusion coefficient (ADCmin) with clinicopathologic features, and to determine their predictive power in endometrial cancer (EC). METHODS: A total of 45 patients who had undergone staging surgery after a preoperative evaluation with 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) positron emission tomography/computerized tomography (PET/CT) and diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (DW-MRI) were included in a prospective case-series study with planned data collection. Multiple linear regression analysis was used to determine the correlations between the study variables. RESULTS: The mean ADCmin and SUVmax values were determined as 0.72±0.22 and 16.54±8.73, respectively. A univariate analysis identified age, myometrial invasion (MI) and lymphovascular space involvement (LVSI) as the potential factors associated with ADCmin while it identified age, stage, tumor size, MI, LVSI and number of metastatic lymph nodes as the potential variables correlated to SUVmax. In multivariate analysis, on the other hand, MI was the only significant variable that correlated with ADCmin (p=0.007) and SUVmax (p=0.024). Deep MI was best predicted by an ADCmin cutoff value of ≤0.77 [93.7% sensitivity, 48.2% specificity, and 93.0% negative predictive value (NPV)] and SUVmax cutoff value of >20.5 (62.5% sensitivity, 86.2% specificity, and 81.0% NPV); however, the two diagnostic tests were not significantly different (p=0.266). CONCLUSION: Among clinicopathologic features, only MI was independently correlated with SUVmax and ADCmin. However, the routine use of 18F-FDG PET/CT or DW-MRI cannot be recommended at the moment due to less than ideal predictive performances of both parameters.

68Ga-PSMA Uptake by Dermatofibroma in a Patient With Prostate Cancer.

Prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) is a typ. 2 transmembrane protein that is highly expressed in prostate cancer cells. Ga-PSMA PET/CT imaging is a modality used to determine the extent of prostate cancer. Various other neoplasias may also express PSMA, which appears as Ga-PSMA uptake in PET/CT imaging. A 71-year-old man with prostate cancer underwent Ga-PSMA PET/CT imaging for restaging after having an elevated prostate-specific antigen level. Subcutaneous lesions showing focal PSMA uptake were detected, one of which was excised. The histopathologic diagnosis was dermatofibroma.

Role of Tc-99m pertechnetate for remnant scintigraphy, post-thyroidectomy, and serum thyroglobulin and antithyroglobulin antibody levels in the patients with differentiated thyroid cancer.

AIM: Postoperative scanning may help to identify patients with differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC); however, low dose I-131 can lead to stunning and suboptimal response to ablative therapy. The aim of this retrospective study is to compare postablative I-131 scintigraphy with post-thyroidectomy Tc-99m pertechnetate scintigraphy, serum thyroglobulin (Tg) and antithyroglobulin antibody (TgAb) levels in patients with DTC. METHODS: Patients who had undergone surgical thyroidectomy for DTC were evaluated retrospectively. All patients had undergone Tc-99m pertechnetate and postablative I-131 scans. Serum Tg and TgAb levels were measured in all subjects. Preablative pertechnetate scans of the thyroid bed were viewed blindly and then directly compared with postablative I-131 scans and Tc-99m pertechnetate scintigraphy was compared with serum Tg and TgAb levels. RESULTS: One hundred and seventy-four patients (146 women, 28 men) with a mean age of 48.7 ± 13.1 (range 12-84) years who had undergone surgical thyroidectomy for DTC were evaluated retrospectively. Of 174 patients, 6 (3%) had negative I-131 and also Tc-99m pertechnetate scintigraphy results. Of the remaining 168 positive I-131 scans, 131 (75%) were positive in at least one site on the pertechnetate scan, 19 (11%) were considered to have equivocal uptake and 18 (11%) were negative. For the per-site analysis, pertechnetate sites were considered to be accurately determined if they showed concordant uptake at sites that correlated precisely with those seen on the postablation I-131 scans. There were a total of 356 positive foci on I-131 scans. Of these, 273 foci (77%) were unequivocally positive on pertechnetate scintigraphy, 41 (11%) showed equivocal uptake and 42 (12%) foci could not be detected. There were statistically significant differences (p < 0.0001) between the negative and positive foci in terms of Tg levels on pertechnetate sites. CONCLUSIONS: A positive pertechnetate scan is, therefore, sufficient to guide progression to I-131 ablation in most patients. Pertechnetate scintigraphy may be of particular benefit if it is considered desirable to avoid use of I-131 in post-thyroidectomy remnant imaging. Tg level is an important parameter in the detection of remnant thyroid tissue in patients with DTC.

Is there any relation between PET-CT SUVmax value and prognostic factors in locally advanced breast cancer?

PURPOSE: To investigate the relation between PET-CT SUVmax value and prognostic factors in locally advanced breast cancer. METHODS: Data of 73 patients were retrospectively analyzed. Relations between SUVmax value, clinical stage, tumor grade and breast cancer molecular subtypes were analyzed by using one-way ANOVA and x(2) tests. Correlations between age, ki-67 scores and SUVmax were evaluated by using Pearson's correlation test. A p value <0.05 was considered statistically significant. RESULTS: Median SUVmax values for clinical stages 1, 2 and 3 were 5 (range 2.1-4.1), 10.6 (range 2.9-19.6), and 12.2 (range 3.2-23.3), respectively. Statistically significant difference was noticed between stage 1 and 2 (p=0.014) and stage 1 and 3 (p=0.001). Median SUVmax values of triple negative, luminal A, luminal B and non-luminal HER2 positive groups were 14.4 (range 6.6-23.3), 8.2 (range 2.1-18.2), 10.1 (range 3.5-19.6), and 14 (range 4.1-22.9), respectively. Statistically significant differences were noticed in SUVmax values between triple-negative and luminal A groups (p=0.005) and between non-luminal HER2 positive and luminal A groups (p=0.02). Median SUVmax values of grade 1, 2 and 3 were 5.7 (range 2.1-18.2), 9.5 (range 2.2-21.3), and 11.6 (range 3.5-23), respectively. Statistically significant difference was noticed only between SUVmax values of grade 1 and 3 (p=0.035). There was negative correlation between age and SUVmax value (r=-0.23, p=0.047) and positive correlation between ki-67 and SUVmax value (r=0.43, p=0.016). CONCLUSION: There were significant positive relations between PET-CT SUVmax value and clinical stage, tumor grade, and certain breast cancer molecular subtypes (triple-negative and non-luminal HER2 positive groups. Moreover, positive correlation was found between SUVmax value and ki-67 and negative correlation between SUVmax value and age.

A case of plastron appendicitis mimicking malignant cecal tumor in flourodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography/computed tomography study.

In recent years, flourodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography/computed tomography (FDG PET/CT) has been used intensively in the field of oncology. However, an increase in FDG uptake has been observed both in malignant tissues, and inflammatory processes. Therefore false-positive results have appeared. We present a 70-year-old male patient who presented to the hospital with right lower quadrant pain. A right lower quadrant mass was observed with conventional methods, and PET/CT was performed which revealed a hypermetabolic mass in the right lower quadrant. The patient was referred to the surgery with a suspect malignant mass whose histopathological report indicated plastron appendicitis. Although FDG PET/CT is a reliable method in the evaluation of oncological cases, false-positivities should be taken into consideration in inflammatory processes.

Comparison of Cystatin C and ß-Trace Protein Versus 99mTc-DTPA Plasma Sampling in Determining Glomerular Filtration Rate in Chronic Renal Disease.

UNLABELLED: Glomerular filtration rate (GFR) is the best indicator of renal function. The gold standard for GFR measurement is inulin clearance. However, its measurement is inconvenient, time-consuming, and costly. Thus, in both scientific studies and routine clinical practice nuclear medicine methods ((99m)Tc-diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid [(99m)Tc-DTPA] and (51)Cr-ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid [(51)Cr-EDTA]) are preferred, and they correlate strongly with inulin clearance. In addition, cystatin C and ß-trace protein have also recently been used for this purpose. In the literature, however, data are limited about the clinical value of cystatin C and ß-trace protein in GFR measurement in chronic renal disease (CRD), and the results have been inconclusive. In this study, we aimed to determine the efficiency of cystatin C and ß-trace protein in the determination of GFR in CRD patients. METHODS: Eighty-four patients with CRD were included in the study (59 men and 25 women; age range, 21-88 y; mean age, 61 y). GFR was calculated using the gold-standard (99m)Tc-DTPA 2-sample plasma sampling method (TPSM) and 2 alternative methods: a formula using cystatin C and a formula using ß-trace protein. The correlation between TPSM and the cystatin C and ß-trace protein methods was assessed, and Bland-Altman analysis was used to graph scatterplots of the differences at a confidence interval of 95% (mean difference ± 1.96 SDs). RESULTS: GFRs calculated using both alternative methods correlated strongly with those calculated using the gold standard. However, the correlation was stronger for the cystatin C method than for the ß-trace protein method, and neither method produced reliably consistent GFRs. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrated that cystatin C and ß-trace protein do not reflect GFR with sufficient accuracy.