Clinical applications of ¹⁸F-FDG PET in the management of hepatobiliary and pancreatic tumors

The assessment of hepatobiliary and pancreatic tumors is commonly achieved by ultrasound, computed tomography (CT), and magnetic resonance. The 2-[fluorine-18]fluoro-2-deoxy-d-glucose (FDG) positron emission tomography (PET) detects increased glucose metabolism associated with neoplastic lesions, provides high accuracy in most cancer imaging applications and is now widely used in clinical practice. However, PET is not always useful and accurate knowledge of appropriate indications is essential for a proper clinical management. ¹⁸F-FDG is transported into cells and phosphorylated by the enzyme hexokinase to ¹⁸F-FDG-6-phosphate, which cannot proceed down the glycolytic pathway and therefore is accumulated in the malignant tissue. PET allows accurate quantification of FDG uptake in tissue, and previous studies have demonstrated that standardized uptake values provide highly reproducible parameters of tumor glucose use (Weber et al., J Nucl Med 40:1771–1777, 1999). The recent development and diffusion of hybrid PET–CT scanners allows functional and anatomic data to be obtained in a single examination, improving lesion localization and resulting in significant diagnostic improvement (Wahl, J Nucl Med 45:82S–95S, 2004). Moreover, CT can be performed diagnostically with the use of intravenous and oral contrast and simultaneous PET–contrast-enhanced CT scanning appears to be an efficient method in cancer evaluation. However, in most centers, a low-dose CT is routinely performed without contrast media infusion.

Proper patient preparation, scanning protocol, combined assessment of PET and CT data, and the evaluation of conventional imaging findings are essential to define disease and to avoid diagnostic pitfalls. The role of PET and PET–CT in malignancies of the liver, biliary tract, and pancreas is here reviewed; normal patterns, representative cases, and common pitfalls are also presented.