F-18 FDG PET/CT as a Surveillance Tool for the Detection of Locoregionally Advanced Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Recurrences in an Endemic Area

摘要

Background: Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is characterized by a higher rate of distant metastases compared with other head and neck malignancies. Although there have been many studies demonstrating the impact of F-18 FDG PET/CT on the management plan in NPC patients, the role of PET/CT for the post-treatment annual surveillance has not been evaluated. In this study, we sought to investigate whether F-18 FDG PET/CT may be useful for this purpose. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the records of M0 NPC patients who completed definitive therapy in our hospital. A total of 97 patients who achieved complete remission and received both F-18 FDG PET/CT and conventional work-up (CWU) for post-treatment annual surveillance were enrolled. All participants were initially evaluated at one year. Thirty-eight patients who had negative imaging findings at one year received an additional PET/CT scan two years after therapy. Histopathology and follow-up findings were taken as the gold standard to determine the diagnostic accuracy of F-18 FDG PET/CT and CWU.