Prediction of cardiac events following concurrent chemoradiation therapy for non-small-cell lung cancer using FDG PET

No imaging biomarkers are available for the prediction of cardiac events following concurrent chemoradiation therapy (CCRT) for non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). We evaluated whether F-18 fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG PET) early after CCRT, in addition to cardiac dosimetry, could predict late cardiac events in NSCLC.

We retrospectively enrolled 133 consecutive patients with locally advanced, unresectable stage III NSCLC, who underwent FDG PET early after CCRT and survived at least 6 months. The primary endpoint was cardiac event ≥ grade 2 according to the Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events (version 5.0). Myocardial FDG uptake was measured and its association with the risk of cardiac events was evaluated.

FDG PET was performed after a median interval of 11 days of completing CCRT. Overall, 42 (32%) patients experienced cardiac events during a median follow-up of 45 months. The mean heart dose, maximum left ventricular (LV) standardized uptake value (SUV), changes in maximum and mean LV SUV, right ventricular uptake, tumor stage, white blood cell count, and diabetes were associated with cardiac events in univariable analysis. In multivariable analysis, maximum LV SUV (cutoff > 12.84; hazard ratio [95% confidence interval] = 2.140 [1.140–4.016]; p = 0.018) was an independent predictor of cardiac events along with the mean heart dose (> 11.1 Gy; 3.646 [1.792–7.417]; p < 0.001) and tumor stage (IIIB; 1.986 [1.056–3.734]; p = 0.033). It remained predictive of cardiac events in those with higher mean heart dose but not in those with lower mean heart dose.

Early FDG PET after CCRT for NSCLC could aid in predicting late cardiac events, especially in patients with higher mean heart dose.