Review of clinical practice utility of positron emission tomography with 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose in assessing tumour response to therapy

Positron emission tomography, most commonly with 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose, is being used for evaluation of tumour response to therapy. Limitations of this method are associated with (1) fluorodeoxyglucose pharmacokinetic properties, (2) the detection system, (3) discrepancies between metabolic and anatomic images, and (4) acquisition standardization. Response to therapy may be evaluated with qualitative (Deauville score), semiquantitative (standardised uptake value), and quantitative methods (European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer; Positron Emission Tomography Response Criteria in Solid Tumours). Methods under evaluation include metabolic tumour volume, total lesion glycolysis, and heterogeneity of fluorodeoxyglucose uptake. The development of positron emission tomography scanners that have larger fields of view may facilitate tumour assessment based on kinetic modelling. Increased clinical use of these methods will depend on the development and validation of intuitive and simple analytic tools.