ABSTRACT
Objective To evaluate the clinical value of 18-fluoro-deoxyglucose positron emission tomography-CT(~(18)FDG PET-CT) for recurrence and metastasis in treated esophageal carcinoma (EC). Methods A retrospective study is done on 37 previously treated EC patients who underwent PET-CT scans to detect recurrent or metastatic lesions.The diagnostic accuracy of ~(18)FDG PET-CT was assessed with the help of pathological finding as well as clinical or follow-up data.Results Fourty-six sites of recurrence were finally confirmed in 37 patients by cytology,pathology or follow-up data.The sensitivity,specificity and accuracy of PET-CT in detecting recurrence of all sites were 93.5% (43/46),76.9% (20/26) and 87.5% (63/72),respectively.Two false-positive findings were found both at the anastomosis and hilar nodes,which caused the decrease in the overall specificity,especially that locally.The analysis of standard uptake value (SUV) demonstrated that patients with recurrence or who died during follow-up had higher SU- Vs compared with the control group.Condusions ~(18)FDG PET-CT is highly effective in detecting recur- rence in previously treated EC patients despite the low specificity at local sites.The analysis of stardard up- take value(SUV) provides incremental value in prognosis for this patient cohart.