Korean J Nucl Med.
2004 Dec;38(6):481-485.
The Role of PET in Staging Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer
- Affiliations
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- 1Department of Nuclear Medicine, Inha University College of Medicine, Inchon, Korea. iyhyun@dragon.inha.ac.kr
Abstract
- Lung cancer has become a leading cause of cancer death in Korea. Accurate staging of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is essential to the ability to offer a patient the most effective available treatment and the best estimate of prognosis. PET with F-18 fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) is indicated for the nodal staging of NSCLC and detection of distant metastases. Use of PET for mediastinal staging should not be relied on as a sole staging modality, and positive findings should be confirmed by mediastinoscopy. FDG PET avoids futile surgery by a more accurate selection of patients, especially by the detection of unexpected distant metastases.
