Incidental findings of the thyroid gland on PET-CT

ARTICLE TITLE: Incidental findings of the thyroid gland on PET-CT.

AUTHORS: Suchilova M.M.1, Korkunova O. A.1, Nikolaev A. E.2, Grishkov S.M.2., Bosin V.Yu.2.

INSTITUTIONS:

  1. FSBEI FPE RMACPE MOH, Russia
  2. Research and Practical Clinical Center of Diagnostics and Telemedicine Technologies, Department of Health Care of Moscow, Russia

THESIS:

Incidental findings of the thyroid gland are common on the whole-body FDG (18F- flurodeoxyglucose) positron emission tomography-computed tomography (PET-CT).

Materials and Methods:

A retrospective review of 100 patients with breast cancer (AJCC IV) was done. PET-CT studies with incidental focal and diffuse FDG thyroid uptake formed the review basis. These studies were performed within a period of 12 months (January 1, 2016-December 31, 2016). Twenty two (n=22) patients out of 100 (22%) had FDG thyroid uptake and comprised the study group. We excluded patients who had a history of previous thyroid malignancy or predisposing causes (e.g., Cowden syndrome).

Scans were acquired approximately 60 min after the injection of 555MBq (15mCi) FDG with the Gemini TF PET/CT (Philips Medical Systems, Cleveland, Ohio, USA) scanner with a 16-slice Brilliance CT.

Results:

This study shows that thyroid FDG uptake, incidentally identified on PET/CT of patients with breast cancer (AJCC - IV), occurred at a frequency of 22%. Focal and diffuse types of uptake were diagnosed with equal frequency.

Conclusion:

However, well-defined criteria for evaluating thyroid incidentalomas on PET examinations aren’t developed yet and ultrasound still remains the method of choice for analyzing thyroid changes

KEYWORDS: incidentaloma, PET-CT, thyroid gland, FDG-uptake, petoma CORRESPONDING AUTHOR: Suchilova M.M.

E-MAIL: maria.suchilova@gmail.com

FOR CITATIONS: Suchilova M. M.1. Korkunova O. A.1. Nikolayev A.E.2. Grishkov S.M.2. Bosin V.Yu.2. - Incidental findings of the thyroid gland on PET-CT // Radiology Study. - 2019. - T1., No1. - p.7-15

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