Non-Malignant 18F-FDG Uptake in the Thorax by Positron Emission Tomography Computed Tomography Fusion Imaging

ABSTRACT

Fluorine-18 2-fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose (18F-FDG) positron emission tomography (PET) has been used exclusively to diagnose malignancies. However, increased FDG uptake is not always limited to malignant tissue. Many false positive findings for PET have been reported. Moreover, the use of PET/CT may allow the reassessment of previously recognized patterns of physiological bio-distribution of a tracer. In this report we demonstrate the physiological FDG uptake of normal structures in the thorax using PET/CT imaging and illustrate many benign pathological conditions with standardized uptake values greater than 2.5.