Imaging: improving detection of bone metastases in renal cell carcinoma

Current imaging techniques for detecting bone metastases in renal carcinoma are insensitive to small lesions. This prospective trial of 18F-NaF PET/CT shows it is more than twice as sensitive as CT and more than three times as sensitive as bone scintigraphy for these lesions. 18F-NaF PET/CT could alter management by identifying occult metastases in patients with negative standard-of-care imaging.
Background The detection of occult bone metastases is a key factor in determining the management of patients with renal cell carcinoma (RCC), especially when curative surgery is considered. This prospective study assessed the sensitivity of 18F-labelled sodium fluoride in conjunction with positron emission tomography/computed tomography (18F-NaF PET/CT) for detecting RCC bone metastases, compared with conventional imaging by bone scintigraphy or CT. Patients and methods An adaptive two-stage trial design was utilized, which was stopped after the first stage due to statistical efficacy. Ten patients with stage IV RCC and bone metastases were imaged with 18F-NaF PET/CT and 99mTc-labelled methylene diphosphonate (99mTc-MDP) bone scintigraphy including pelvic single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT). Images were reported independently by experienced radiologists and nuclear medicine physicians using a 5-point scoring system. Results Seventy-seven lesions were diagnosed as malignant: 100% were identified by 18F-NaF PET/CT, 46% by CT and 29% by bone scintigraphy/SPECT. Standard-of-care imaging with CT and bone scintigraphy identified 65% of the metastases reported by 18F-NaF PET/CT. On an individual patient basis, 18F-NaF PET/CT detected more RCC metastases than 99mTc-MDP bone scintigraphy/SPECT or CT alone (P = 0.007). The metabolic volumes, mean and maximum standardized uptake values (SUVmean and SUVmax) of the malignant lesions were significantly greater than those of the benign lesions (P < 0.001). Conclusions 18F-NaF PET/CT is significantly more sensitive at detecting RCC skeletal metastases than conventional bone scintigraphy or CT. The detection of occult bone metastases could greatly alter patient management, particularly in the context when standard-of-care imaging is negative for skeletal metastases.