Pulmonary artery imaging with 68 Ga-FAPI-04 in patients with chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension

• Published in: Journal of nuclear cardiology Vol. 30; no. 3; pp. 1166 - 1172
• Main Authors: Gong, Juan-Ni, Chen, Bi-Xi, Xing, Hai-Qun, Huo, Li, Yang, Yuan-Hua, Yang, Min-Fu
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cham Elsevier Inc 01.06.2023; Springer International Publishing; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: 68 Ga-FAPI-04; Brief Report; Cardiology; CTEPH; Fibroblasts; fibrosis; Humans; Hypertension, Pulmonary; Imaging; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Nuclear Medicine; PET/CT; Positron Emission Tomography Computed Tomography; Pulmonary arteries; Pulmonary Artery; Pulmonary hypertension; Quinolines; Radiology; Thromboembolism; Veins & arteries; fibrosis; CTEPH; 68 Ga-FAPI-04; PET/CT; Ga-FAPI-04; 68 Ga-FAPI-04
• ISSN: 1071-3581; 1532-6551; 1532-6551
• DOI: 10.1007/s12350-022-03069-3

The feasibility and significance of imaging pulmonary artery (PA) remodeling with 68 Ga-fibroblast activating protein inhibitor (FAPI) in patients with chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH) have not yet been addressed. 68 Ga-FAPI-04 uptake in the PA and ascending artery was evaluated in 13 patients with CTEPH and 13 matched non-CTEPH controls. The correlations of PA 68 Ga-FAPI-04 uptake and remodeling parameters derived from right heart catheterization (RHC) were analyzed. Of the 13 patients with CTEPH, nine (69%) showed visually enhanced 68 Ga-FAPI-04 uptake, whereas none of the control subjects had increased 68 Ga-FAPI-04 uptake in the PA. The prevalence of enhanced uptake in the main, lobar, and segmental PAs was 45% (17/38), 33% (16/48), and 28% (44/159), respectively. 68 Ga-FAPI-04 activity in the PA was positively correlated with pulmonary arterial diastolic pressure (r = 0.571, P = 0.041). 68 Ga-FAPI-04 has the potential for imaging fibroblast activation in the PA wall, and 68 Ga-FAPI-04 activity in PA is positively correlated with pulmonary arterial diastolic pressure. ▪