Flutemetamol (18F): A beta-amyloid positron emission tomography tracer for Alzheimer's and dementia diagnosis

Abstract

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a progressive, neurodegenerative disease likely to dramatically increase in prevalence in the next few decades. Currently, the only method for definitive diagnosis is to determine the presence of β-amyloid in the brain of AD patients at autopsy. Flutemetamol (18F) (Vizamyl™) is a novel (18)F-labeled radiotracer for positron emission tomography (PET). Flutemetamol (18F) displays similar metabolism and dosimetry to the established amyloid PET imaging tracer (11)C-labeled Pittsburgh Compound B and other (18)F-labeled radiopharmaceuticals, and is rapidly taken up into the brain and binds to β-amyloid deposits. Scans can be reliably quantified by the use of relative standard uptake value ratios, using the cerebellar cortex as a reference region. High sensitivity and specificity were demonstrated in phase III trials in discriminating between patients with AD and healthy controls and across a spectrum of AD, leading to the agent's approval to assist in the assessment of amyloid plaque pathology in AD patients.