Search

PET-CT and PET-MRI in oncology , PET-CT and PET-MRI in oncology , کتابخانه دیجیتال جندی شاپور اهواز

In modern clinical oncology, there is a growing need to identify response to treatment to detect improvement or worsening of the disease as early as possible. Anatomical imaging modalities that rely on morphologic or structural data, though precise in the delineation of lesions, do not provide functional information about response and have limited reproducibility. The accuracy of anatomical parameters is limited partly due to the delay between the treatment and the appearance of tumor shrinkage. As the changes in tumor metabolism precede the changes in tumor size, functional imaging modalities are more clinically useful and allow visualization of tumor response at earlier stages. PET provides information regarding the metabolic behavior of the disease, independent of morphological and anatomical criteria. This chapter reviews the current evidence on the potential contribution of PET to evaluation of response to therapy and the challenges ahead, especially the standardization of performing clinical PET/CT across centers, to be meaningful in patient care.