Value of positron emission tomography/computed tomography in diagnosis and staging of primary ocular and orbital tumors

• Published in: Saudi journal of ophthalmology Vol. 26; no. 4; pp. 365 - 371
• Main Authors: Hui, Ka-Hoi, Pfeiffer, Margaret L., Esmaeli, Bita
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Saudi Arabia Elsevier B.V 01.10.2012; Elsevier
• Subjects: Cancer staging; MALT lymphoma; Oculoplastic Imaging Update; Orbital lymphoma; Orbital tumors; Positron emission tomography/computed tomography; Uveal melanoma; Uveal melanoma; MALT lymphoma; Orbital lymphoma; Orbital tumors; Cancer staging; Positron emission tomography/computed tomography
• ISSN: 1319-4534
• DOI: 10.1016/j.sjopt.2012.08.008

Accurate and reliable staging methods are crucial for optimal care of patients with ocular and orbital malignancies. Positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) has recently emerged as a staging tool in the field of ophthalmic oncology. For detecting primary ocular or orbital lesions, PET/CT does not seem to provide an advantage over clinical ophthalmologic examination or conventional imaging studies such as CT or magnetic resonance imaging of the orbit. However, PET/CT may detect distant metastatic lesions that conventional imaging studies miss. For orbital and ocular adnexal lymphoma, use of PET/CT has been proven to be feasible and is now accepted both as a standard part of the initial staging work-up and for the assessment of response to therapy. For other ophthalmic tumors, PET/CT seems most appropriate for advanced metastatic tumors of the orbit, eyelid, and eye, for which the detection of distant metastasis with 1 comprehensive study may be preferable to performing multiple CT scans with contrast.