The future of choline PET in the era of prostate specific membrane antigen.

ABSTRACT

Radiolabeled choline was the first radiopharmaceutical agent employed in prostate cancer patients. It has been considered a metabolic agent able to detect the presence of prostate cancer cell, both in the initial phase of the disease and in the restaging setting. Three agents are now available in clinical practice one radiolabeled with 11C (called 11C-Choline) and two with 18F (either as 18F-methylcholine or 18F-ethylcholine). During the years, different studies have been performed with 11C -Choline and 18F-Choline demonstrating their performance for the detection of prostate cancer, in different settings of the disease. However, recently, new radiopharmaceutical agents for prostate cancer have been developed, gaining an important role for the diagnosis of prostate cancer, particularly in the restaging setting. The present review has been conceived in order to discuss the current role of radiolabeled choline PET/CT in the era of new agents for prostate cancer, in particular in the era of radiolabeled PSMA.