Vorster, MarizaMaes, AlexJacobs, AldrichMalefahlo, SidneyPottel, HansVan de Wiele, ChristopheSathekge, Mike Machaba2015-11-092015-11-092014-07Vorster, M, Maes, A, Jacobs, A, Malefahlo, S, Pottel, H, Van de Wiele, C & Sathekge, MM 2014, 'Evaluating the possible role of 68Ga-citrate PET/CT in the characterization of indeterminate lung lesions', Annals of Nuclear Medicine, vol. 28, no. 6, pp. 523-530.0914-7187 (print)1864-6433 (online)10.1007/s12149-014-0842-9http://hdl.handle.net/2263/50381We sought to determine whether PET/CT imaging with 68Ga-citrate could be of value in distinguishing benign from malignant lung pathology in a setting with a high prevalence of granulomatous diseases. METHODS : Thirty-six consecutive patients with indeterminate lung lesions prospectively underwent dual time point (60 and 120 min) 68Ga-citrate PET/CT study prior to lung biopsy. Qualitative and semi-quantitative measures of tracer uptake in the lung lesions (SUVmax) were compared to the histopathology in order to establish an imaging pattern to distinguish benign from malignant lesions. RESULTS : Fourteen patients (38.9 %) were diagnosed with a malignant lesion, 12 (33.3 %) with tuberculosis (TB), and 10 participants (27.8 %) with other benign lung lesions. At 60-min post-injection, patients who were diagnosed with a malignant lesion (n = 14) demonstrated a mean SUVmax of 3.36 ± 1.14, with a median value of 3.04 (min = 1.56, max = 4.65).Those with TB (n = 12) demonstrated a SUVmax of 3.99 ± 2.28, and a median value of 3.71 (pct25 = 2.19, pct75 = 4.95). In patients with other benign lesions (n = 10), the following values were observed: a SUVmax of 2.70 ± 1.31, a median value of 2.50 (pct25 = 1.76, pct75 = 3.59). The mean values of these three types of pathology were not statistically significant (p = 0.1919), and therefore the SUVmax could not be used to accurately distinguish between these lesions using both early and delayed imaging. CONCLUSION : This study, as the first 68Ga-citrate PET/CT in humans for the in vivo imaging of lung pathology, demonstrated its potential for the detection of both malignancy and TB. However, 68Ga-citrate seemed incapable of providing a clear distinction between malignant and benign lung lesions in a setting with a high prevalence of granulomatous diseases such as TB.en© The Japanese Society of Nuclear Medicine 2014. The original publication is available at : http://link.springer.comjournal/12149.68Ga-citrateLung lesionsTuberculosis (TB)PET/CTPositron emission tomography (PET)Computerized tomography (CT)Postprint Article