Tuberc Respir Dis.  1996 Dec;43(6):882-893. 10.4046/trd.1996.43.6.882.

Diagnostic Efficacy of FDG-PET Imaging in Solitary Pulmonary Nodule

• Cheon EM
• Kim BT
• Kwon OJ
• Kim H
• Chung MP
• Rhee CH
• Han YC
• Lee KS
• Shim YM
• Kim J
• Han J

• KMID: 2044753
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.4046/trd.1996.43.6.882

Abstract

METHOD: 34 patients with a solitary pulmonary nodule less than 6 cm of its diameter who visited Samsung Medical Center from Semptember, 1994 to Semptember, 1995 were evaluated prospectively. Simple chest roentgenography, chest computer tomography, FDG-PET scan were performed for all patients. The results of FDG-PET were evaluated comparing with the results of final diagnosis confirmed by sputum study, PCNA, fiberoptic bronchoscopy, or thoracotomy.
Results
(1) There was no significant difference in nodule size between malignant (3.1 1.5cm) and benign nodule(2.81.0cm)(P>0.05). (2) Peak SUV (standardized uptake value) of malignant nodules (6.93.7) was significantly higher than peak SUV of benign nodules(2.71.7) and time-activity curves showed continuous increase in malignant nodules. (3) Three false negative cases were found among eighteen malignant nodule by the FDG-PET imaging study and all three cases were nonmucinous bronchioloalveolar carcinoma less than 2 cm diameter. (4) FDG-PET imaging resulted in 83% sensitivity, 100% specificity, 100% positive predictive value and 84% negative predictive value.
Conclusion
FDG-PET imaging is a new noninvasive diagnostic method of solitary pulmonary nodule that has a high accuracy of differential diagnosis between malignant and benign nodule. FDG-PET imaging could be used for the differential diagnosis of SPN which is not properly diagnosed with conventional methods before thoracotomy. Considering the high accuracy of FDG-PET imaging, this procedure may play an important role in making the dicision to perform thoracotomy in diffcult cases.

Keyword

solitary pulmonary nodule; FDG-PET

MeSH Terms

Adenocarcinoma, Bronchiolo-Alveolar
Bronchoscopy
Diagnosis
Diagnosis, Differential
Humans
Proliferating Cell Nuclear Antigen
Prospective Studies
Radiography
Sensitivity and Specificity
Solitary Pulmonary Nodule*
Sputum
Thoracotomy
Thorax
Proliferating Cell Nuclear Antigen