An update on PET-based molecular imaging in neuro-oncology: challenges and implementation for a precision medicine approach in cancer care

Hossein Shooli; Habibollah Dadgar; Yì-Xiáng J Wáng; Manochehr Seyedi Vafaee; Saman Rassaei Kashuk; Reza Nemati; Esmail Jafari; Iraj Nabipour; Ali Gholamrezanezhad; Majid Assadi; Mykol Larvie

doi:10.21037/qims.2019.08.16

An update on PET-based molecular imaging in neuro-oncology: challenges and implementation for a precision medicine approach in cancer care

Quant Imaging Med Surg. 2019 Sep;9(9):1597-1610. doi: 10.21037/qims.2019.08.16.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ The Persian Gulf Nuclear Medicine Research Center, Department of Molecular Imaging and Radionuclide Therapy (MIRT), Bushehr Medical University Hospital, Faculty of Medicine, Bushehr University of Medical Sciences, Bushehr, Iran.
² Cancer Research Center, RAZAVI Hospital, Imam Reza International University, Mashhad, Iran.
³ Department of Imaging and Interventional Radiology, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Prince of Wales Hospital, Shatin, New Territories, Hong Kong SAR, China.
⁴ Department of Nuclear Medicine, Odense University Hospital, Odense, Denmark.
⁵ Translational Neuroscience, BRIDGE, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark.
⁶ Neuroscience Research Center, Faculty of Medicine, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran.
⁷ Department of Neurology, Bushehr Medical University Hospital, Faculty of Medicine, Bushehr University of Medical Sciences, Bushehr, Iran.
⁸ The Persian Gulf Marine Biotechnology Research Center, The Persian Gulf Biomedical Sciences Research Institute, Bushehr University of Medical Sciences, Bushehr, Iran.
⁹ Department of Diagnostic Radiology, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90033, USA.
¹⁰ Department of Nuclear Medicine, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH 44195, USA.
¹¹ Neurological Institute, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH 44195, USA.

Abstract

PET imaging using novel radiotracers show promises for tumor grading and molecular characterization through visualizing molecular and functional properties of the tumors. Application of PET tracers in brain neoplasm depends on both type of the neoplasm and the research or clinical significance required to be addressed. In clinical neuro-oncology, ¹⁸F-FDG is used mainly to differentiate tumor recurrence from radiation-induced necrosis, and novel PET agents show attractive imaging properties. Novel PET tracers can offer biologic information not visible via contrast-enhanced MRI or ¹⁸F-FDG PET. This review aims to provide an update on the complementary role of PET imaging in neuro-oncology both in research and clinical settings along with presenting interesting cases in this context.

Keywords: 68Ga-DOTA-peptide; 68Ga-labeled PSMA; Positron emission tomography (PET); brain tumors; magnetic resonance imaging (MRI); molecular imaging; precision medicine.

Publication types

Review