Abstract
To evaluate the potential value of [68Ga]Ga-labelled fibroblast activation protein inhibitor ([68Ga]Ga-FAPI) positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) in preoperative staging for patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) as compared to 2-[18F]fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose (2-[18F]FDG) PET/CT. Thirty-six treatment-naïve patients with OSCC who underwent 2-[18F]FDG and [68Ga]Ga-FAPI PET/CT for preoperative staging were enrolled. The maximum standardised uptake value (SUVmax) of the primary tumour and suspected cervical metastatic lymph nodes, and the tumour-to-background ratio (TBR) of the primary tumour, were measured. The accuracy of two imaging modalities for preoperative diagnosis of metastatic lymph nodes was analysed. Histopathology served as the standard of reference. Thirty-seven primary lesions of 36 patients were accurately detected by both [68Ga]Ga-FAPI and 2-[18F]FDG PET/CT. Regarding primary tumours, the SUVmax and TBR of the two imaging modalities in stage T3-T4 were significantly higher than those of stage T1-T2 (all p < 0.05). On the patient analysis, the accuracy for the evaluation of N1-N3 neck status was 52.6% (10/19) for [68Ga]Ga-FAPI PET/CT and 57.9% (11/19) for 2-[18F]FDG PET/CT. Notably, the accuracy for the evaluation of the N0 neck status between [68Ga]Ga-FAPI and 2-[18F]FDG PET/CT was 100% (17/17) and 29% (5/17), respectively. Based on the patient, neck side and neck level, [68Ga]Ga-FAPI PET/CT resulted in higher specificity and accuracy in diagnosing metastatic neck lymph nodes than 2-[18F]FDG PET/CT (all p < 0.05). [68Ga]Ga-FAPI PET/CT is a promising tool for preoperative staging of OSCC, and appears to reduce the false positivity seen with 2-[18F]FDG PET/CT for the detection of neck lymph node metastases. • [68Ga]Ga-FAPI PET/CT is a promising tool targeting cancer-associated fibroblasts with comparable diagnostic performance to 2-[18F]FDG PET/CT for identifying the primary lesions of OSCC. • [68Ga]Ga-FAPI PET/CT showed higher specificity and accuracy for the evaluation of neck lymph node metastases of OSCC than 2-[18F]FDG PET/CT, especially for N0 neck status.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
