Korean J Endocr Surg.  2009 Sep;9(3):140-143. 10.16956/kjes.2009.9.3.140.

Comparison of Neck CT and ¹⁸F-FDG PET-CT for Making the Preoperative Diagnosis of Lymph Node Metastasis in Papillary Thyroid Cancer

• Jung SI
• Kang HJ
• Yoo YB

• KMID: 2375742
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.16956/kjes.2009.9.3.140

Abstract

PURPOSE
Lymph node metastasis is one of the most important prognostic factors for patients with papillary thyroid cancer. In this study we compared the diagnostic accuracy of neck CT with that of ¹â¸F-FDG PET-CT for the preoperative evaluation of lymph node metastasis.
METHODS
We reviewed the medical records of 56 patients who received surgery for papillary thyroid cancer at the Department of Surgery, Konkuk University Medical Center, from August, 2006 to January, 2009. All the patients were checked with neck CT and ¹â¸F-FDG PET-CT preoperatively for evaluating their lymph node status.
RESULTS
Neck CT showed a sensitivity of 40%, a specificity of 74.2%, a positive predictive value of 55.6%, a negative predictive value of 60.5% and an accuracy of 58.9%. ¹â¸F-FDG PET-CT showed a sensitivity of 48%, a specificity of 80.6%, a positive predictive value of 66.7%, a negative predictive value of 65.8% and an accuracy of 66.1%. ¹â¸FFDG PET-CT had greater sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value and accuracy than did neck CT (P=0.02) for predicting lymph node metastasis in patients with papillary thyroid cancer.
CONCLUSION
¹â¸F-FDG PET-CT can be more dependable than neck CT for preoperatively assessing lymph node metastasis in patients with papillary thyroid cancer.

Keyword

Lymph node metastasis; Neck CT; ¹⁸F-FDG PET-CT

MeSH Terms

Academic Medical Centers
Diagnosis*
Humans
Lymph Nodes*
Medical Records
Neck*
Neoplasm Metastasis*
Sensitivity and Specificity
Thyroid Gland*
Thyroid Neoplasms*