Comparison of Changes in Tumor Metabolic Activity and Tumor Size During Chemotherapy of Adenocarcinomas of the Esophagogastric Junction

• Published in: The Journal of nuclear medicine (1978) Vol. 46; no. 12; pp. 2029 - 2034
• Main Authors: Wieder, Hinrich A, Beer, Ambros J, Lordick, Florian, Ott, Katja, Fischer, Michael, Rummeny, Ernst J, Ziegler, Sibylle, Siewer, Jorg R, Schwaiger, Markus, Weber, Wolfgang A
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Soc Nuclear Med 01.12.2005; Society of Nuclear Medicine
• Subjects: Adenocarcinoma - diagnostic imaging; Adenocarcinoma - pathology; Adult; Aged; Antineoplastic Agents - therapeutic use; Esophageal Neoplasms - diagnostic imaging; Esophageal Neoplasms - pathology; Esophagogastric Junction - pathology; Female; Fluorodeoxyglucose F18; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Neoplasm Metastasis; Neoplasms - pathology; Positron-Emission Tomography - methods; Radiopharmaceuticals; Time Factors; Tomography, X-Ray Computed - methods
• ISSN: 0161-5505; 1535-5667

We evaluated the temporal relationship between chemotherapy-induced changes in tumor glucose use and tumor size. Twenty patients with adenocarcinoma of the esophagogastric junction (AEG) were studied by 18F-FDG PET and CT scans before neoadjuvant chemotherapy, 14 d after the initiation of therapy, and 4 wk after the completion of therapy. The relative change in 18F-FDG uptake was more than 2 times larger than the decrease in tumor size at all time points (P<0.01). At 14 d after the initiation of chemotherapy, there was no correlation between the reduction in 18F-FDG uptake and tumor wall thickness. The change in 18F-FDG uptake after 14 d of therapy was significantly correlated with the reduction in tumor size after the completion of therapy. In AEG, changes in tumor metabolism are a more sensitive parameter for assessing the effects of chemotherapy than are changes in tumor size. Early changes in metabolic activity predict the subsequent reduction in tumor size.