Abstract
BackgroundChanges in maximum standardised uptake values (SUVmax) between serial PET/CT studies are used to determine disease progression or regression in oncologic patients. To measure these changes manually can be time consuming in a clinical routine. A semi-automatic method for calculation of SUVmax in serial PET/CT studies was developed and compared to a conventional manual method. The semi-automatic method first aligns the serial PET/CT studies based on the CT images. Thereafter, the reader selects an abnormal lesion in one of the PET studies. After this manual step, the program automatically detects the corresponding lesion in the other PET study, segments the two lesions and calculates the SUVmax in both studies as well as the difference between the SUVmax values. The results of the semi-automatic analysis were compared to that of a manual SUVmax analysis using a Philips PET/CT workstation. Three readers did the SUVmax readings in both methods. Sixteen patients with lung cancer or lymphoma who had undergone two PET/CT studies were included. There were a total of 26 lesions.ResultsLinear regression analysis of changes in SUVmax show that intercepts and slopes are close to the line of identity for all readers (reader 1: intercept = 1.02, R2 = 0.96; reader 2: intercept = 0.97, R2 = 0.98; reader 3: intercept = 0.99, R2 = 0.98). Manual and semi-automatic method agreed in all cases whether SUVmax had increased or decreased between the serial studies. The average time to measure SUVmax changes in two serial PET/CT examinations was four to five times longer for the manual method compared to the semi-automatic method for all readers (reader 1: 53.7 vs. 10.5 s; reader 2: 27.3 vs. 6.9 s; reader 3: 47.5 vs. 9.5 s; p < 0.001 for all).ConclusionsGood agreement was shown in assessment of SUVmax changes between manual and semi-automatic method. The semi-automatic analysis was four to five times faster to perform than the manual analysis. These findings show the feasibility of using semi-automatic methods for calculation of SUVmax in clinical routine and encourage further development of programs using this type of methods.
Highlights
Changes in maximum standardised uptake values (SUVmax) between serial positron emission tomography (PET)/computed tomography (CT) studies are used to determine disease progression or regression in oncologic patients
Changes in maximum standard uptake values (SUVmax) and computed tomography (CT) tumour size in 18FDG positron emission tomography (PET)/CT follow-up studies in oncologic patients are often assessed in tandem to determine disease progression or regression
The purpose of this study is to demonstrate these qualities using a semi-automatic method for calculation of SUVmax of an abnormal lesion in serial studies when a region of interest (ROI) has been semi-automatically defined in the PET image
Summary
Changes in maximum standardised uptake values (SUVmax) between serial PET/CT studies are used to determine disease progression or regression in oncologic patients. To measure these changes manually can be time consuming in a clinical routine. A semi-automatic method for calculation of SUVmax in serial PET/CT studies was developed and compared to a conventional manual method. The semi-automatic method first aligns the serial PET/CT studies based on the CT images. Changes in maximum standard uptake values (SUVmax) and computed tomography (CT) tumour size in 18FDG positron emission tomography (PET)/CT follow-up studies in oncologic patients are often assessed in tandem to determine disease progression or regression. Due to the increasing amount of examinations and the quantification that can be done, standardization of PET image acquisition and effective computer-aided quantification is warranted
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