Current and Future Use of Long Axial Field-of-View Positron Emission Tomography/Computed Tomography Scanners in Clinical Oncology

Mostafa Roya; Samaneh Mostafapour; Philipp Mohr; Laura Providência; Zekai Li; Johannes H van Snick; Adrienne H Brouwers; Walter Noordzij; Antoon T M Willemsen; Rudi A J O Dierckx; Adriaan A Lammertsma; Andor W J M Glaudemans; Charalampos Tsoumpas; Riemer H J A Slart; Joyce van Sluis

doi:10.3390/cancers15215173

Current and Future Use of Long Axial Field-of-View Positron Emission Tomography/Computed Tomography Scanners in Clinical Oncology

Cancers (Basel). 2023 Oct 27;15(21):5173. doi: 10.3390/cancers15215173.

Authors

Mostafa Roya¹, Samaneh Mostafapour¹, Philipp Mohr¹, Laura Providência¹, Zekai Li¹, Johannes H van Snick¹, Adrienne H Brouwers¹, Walter Noordzij¹, Antoon T M Willemsen¹, Rudi A J O Dierckx¹, Adriaan A Lammertsma¹, Andor W J M Glaudemans¹, Charalampos Tsoumpas¹, Riemer H J A Slart^{1

2}, Joyce van Sluis¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, Medical Imaging Center, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, P.O. Box 30001, 9700 RB Groningen, The Netherlands.
² Department of Biomedical Photonic Imaging, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of Twente, 7522 NB Enchede, The Netherlands.

Abstract

The latest technical development in the field of positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) imaging has been the extension of the PET axial field-of-view. As a result of the increased number of detectors, the long axial field-of-view (LAFOV) PET systems are not only characterized by a larger anatomical coverage but also by a substantially improved sensitivity, compared with conventional short axial field-of-view PET systems. In clinical practice, this innovation has led to the following optimization: (1) improved overall image quality, (2) decreased duration of PET examinations, (3) decreased amount of radioactivity administered to the patient, or (4) a combination of any of the above. In this review, novel applications of LAFOV PET in oncology are highlighted and future directions are discussed.

Keywords: LAFOV PET/CT; dual-tracer imaging; parametric imaging; protocol optimization.

Publication types

Review

Grants and funding

MR receives funding through an unconditional grant from PUSH (a collaboration between Siemens Healthineers and the UMCG). The sponsor had no role in the conceptualization, writing, or publication of the current manuscript.