Positron emission tomography with computed tomography imaging (PET/CT) for the radiotherapy planning definition of the biological target volume: PART 2

Alba Fiorentino; Riccardo Laudicella; Elisa Ciurlia; Salvatore Annunziata; Valentina Lancellotta; Paola Mapelli; Carmelo Tuscano; Federico Caobelli; Laura Evangelista; Lorenza Marino; Natale Quartuccio; Michele Fiore; Paolo Borghetti; Agostino Chiaravalloti; Maria Ricci; Isacco Desideri; Pierpaolo Alongi; AIRO Giovani - Italian Association of Radiation Oncology-Young Members and AIMN -Italian Association of Nuclear Medicine- Young Members Working Group

doi:10.1016/j.critrevonc.2019.03.008

Positron emission tomography with computed tomography imaging (PET/CT) for the radiotherapy planning definition of the biological target volume: PART 2

Crit Rev Oncol Hematol. 2019 Jul:139:117-124. doi: 10.1016/j.critrevonc.2019.03.008. Epub 2019 Mar 20.

Authors

Alba Fiorentino¹, Riccardo Laudicella², Elisa Ciurlia³, Salvatore Annunziata⁴, Valentina Lancellotta⁵, Paola Mapelli⁶, Carmelo Tuscano⁷, Federico Caobelli⁸, Laura Evangelista⁹, Lorenza Marino¹⁰, Natale Quartuccio¹¹, Michele Fiore¹², Paolo Borghetti¹³, Agostino Chiaravalloti¹⁴, Maria Ricci¹⁵, Isacco Desideri¹⁶, Pierpaolo Alongi¹⁷; AIRO Giovani - Italian Association of Radiation Oncology-Young Members and AIMN -Italian Association of Nuclear Medicine- Young Members Working Group

Affiliations

¹ Radiotherapy Oncology Department, General Regional Hospital "F. Miulli", Acquaviva delle Fonti-Bari, Italy. Electronic address: a.fiorentino@miulli.it.
² Department of Biomedical and Dental Sciences and of Morphofunctional Imaging, University of Messina, Italy.
³ Radiotherapy Oncology Department, Vito Fazzi Hospital, Lecce, Italy.
⁴ Fondazione Policlinico A. Gemelli IRCCS-Università Cattolica Sacro Cuore, Roma, Italy.
⁵ Fondazione Policlinico Universitario A. Gemelli IRCCS, UOC di Radioterapia, Dipartimento di Scienze Radiologiche, Radioterapiche ed Ematologiche, Roma, Italy.
⁶ Department of Nuclear Medicine, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy.
⁷ Radiotherapy Oncology Department, Azienda Ospedaliera Bianchi-Melacrino-Morelli, Reggio Calabria, Italy.
⁸ Clinic of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, University Hospital Basel, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland.
⁹ Nuclear Medicine Unit, Veneto Institute of Oncology IOV - IRCCS, Padua, Italy.
¹⁰ Radiotherapy Oncology Department, REM, Viagrande, Catania, Italy.
¹¹ Nuclear Medicine Unit, ARNAS Civico Palermo, Palermo, Italy.
¹² Radiation Oncology, Campus Bio-Medico University, Rome, Italy.
¹³ Radiation Oncology Department University and Spedali Civili, Brescia, Italy.
¹⁴ IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Mediterraneo (INM) Neuromed, Pozzilli, Italy; Department of Biomedicine and Prevention, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Italy.
¹⁵ Department of Radiological, Oncological and Pathological Sciences, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
¹⁶ Department of Biomedical, Experimental and Clinical Sciences "Mario Serio", Section of Radiation Oncology, University of Florence, Italy.
¹⁷ Department of Radiological Sciences, Nuclear Medicine Service, Fondazione Istituto G. Giglio, Cefalu, Italy.

PMID: 30940428
DOI: 10.1016/j.critrevonc.2019.03.008

Abstract

Aim: Positron Emission Tomography with Computed Tomography (PET/CT) has been proven to be useful in the definition of Radiotherapy (RT) target volume. In this regard, the present expert review summarizes existing data for pancreas, prostate, gynecological and rectum/anal cancer.

Methods: A comprehensive search of published original article was made, based on SCOPUS and PubMed database, selecting the paper that evaluated the role of PET/CT in the definition of RT volume.

Results: FDG-PET has an important and promising role for pancreatic cancer. Choline PET/CT could be useful for identifying high-risk volumes for prostate cancer; while PSMA PET/CT is still under evaluation. FDG PET/CT in gynecological cancers has been shown to impact external-beam RT planning. The role of FDG-PET for Gross Tumor volume identification is crucial, representing a useful and powerful tool for anal and rectal cancer.

Conclusion: Taken together, molecular and functional imaging approaches offer a major step to individualize radiotherapeutic approach.

Keywords: Imaging; PET/CT; Radiotherapy; Target volume.

Publication types

Review

MeSH terms

Humans
Image Processing, Computer-Assisted / methods*
Neoplasms / diagnostic imaging*
Neoplasms / radiotherapy*
Positron Emission Tomography Computed Tomography / methods*
Radiotherapy Planning, Computer-Assisted / methods*
Radiotherapy, Image-Guided / methods*