Positron emission tomography at the end of first-line therapy and during follow-up in patients with Hodgkin lymphoma: a retrospective study

• Published in: Annals of oncology Vol. 21; no. 6; pp. 1222 - 1227
• Main Authors: Mocikova, H., Obrtlikova, P., Vackova, B., Trneny, M.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford Elsevier Ltd 01-06-2010; Oxford University Press
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Aged; Algorithms; Antineoplastic agents; Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols - therapeutic use; Biological and medical sciences; Female; follow-up; Follow-Up Studies; Hematologic and hematopoietic diseases; Hodgkin Disease - diagnostic imaging; Hodgkin Disease - drug therapy; Hodgkin lymphoma; Humans; Investigative techniques, diagnostic techniques (general aspects); Leukemias. Malignant lymphomas. Malignant reticulosis. Myelofibrosis; Male; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; Neoadjuvant Therapy; PET; Pharmacology. Drug treatments; Positron-Emission Tomography - statistics & numerical data; Prognosis; Retrospective Studies; Young Adult; follow-up; PET; Hodgkin lymphoma; Radionuclide study; Performance evaluation; Human; Exploration; Patient; Hodgkin disease; Malignant hemopathy; Lymphoma; Retrospective; First line treatment; Follow up study; Lymphoproliferative syndrome; Medical imagery; Positron emission tomography; Cancer; Emission tomography
• ISSN: 0923-7534; 1569-8041
• DOI: 10.1093/annonc/mdp522

Routine positron emission tomography (PET) in follow-up of Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) after treatment is still controversial. The aim of this retrospective study was to analyze the clinical impact of routine PET examination during the follow-up for relapse detection in PET-negative HL patients at the end of therapy.
PET scans were carried out in 113 HL patients at the end of therapy and during the follow-up either in regular intervals or in a suspected relapse. Median follow-up of the group was 34 months.
Overall 327 PET scans were evaluated in 113 patients (median three PET scans per patient). At the end of therapy, 94 (83.2%) patients were PET negative and 19 (16.8%) PET positive. Regular follow-up PET scans in 67 of 94 PET-negative patients correctly identified tumor in 6 of 155 PET scans (3.9%). In 27 of 94 patients with clinically suspected relapse, 5 of 27 PET scans (18.5%) confirmed tumor.
Our analysis showed that there is no need for regular follow-up with PET scans in PET-negative patients at the end of therapy: the ratio of true-positive PET scans during the follow-up is low (3.9%). Positive PET at the end of therapy and during follow-up should be evaluated with caution.