Correlation of 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose uptake on positron emission tomography with Ki-67 index and pathological invasive area in lung adenocarcinomas 30 mm or less in size.

BACKGROUND: (18)F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) is commonly used to distinguish benign from malignant lesion. Recently, maximum standardized uptake value (SUVmax) on FDG-PET has found to have prognostic value. We examined the relationship between SUVmax and proliferative activities as indicated by maximum diameter of tumor opacity on mediastinal-window images (TOM), Ki-67 index, and diameter of the pathological invasive area in lung adenocarcinomas 5mm was determined as 2.15 by ROC analysis, with sensitivity of 88.3% and specificity of 84.6%. CONCLUSIONS: SUVmax correlated significantly with Ki-67 index and diameter of the pathological invasive area. The present results suggest the potential role of FDG-PET in predicting adenocarcinomas with invasive characteristics.