ABSTRACT
Objective To evaluate 18 F deoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG PET) in the detection of suspicious recurrence in head and neck cancers , as compared with CT/MRI imaging. Methods Thirty seven patients with clinically suspicious recurrences in head and neck cancers underwent FDG PET, with 34 checked with CT/MRI imaging. The final diagnosis of recurrence were proved by pathology or clinical following up. Results FDG PET detected recurrence successfully in 32 of 37(86.5%) patients with 3 false positives and 2 false negatives. The FDG PET sensitivity, specificity and accuracy in defining local recurrence were 91.7%, 76.9%, 86.5%, respectively; and those of CT/MRI were 68.2%, 75.0%, 61.8%, respectively. Conclusion In comparison with CT/MRI, FDG PET possesses a higher accuracy in detecting recurrence in head and neck cancers.