[en] The primary objective is to assess the efficacy of ${}^{68}$Ga-PSMA-11-PET/CT to detect recurrent location(s) in hormone-sensitive prostate cancer (PCa). Secondary objectives are (1) to evaluate changes in clinical management; (2) to determine which covariates independently predict positive scan; (3) to assess ${}^{68}$Ga-PSMA-11-PET/CT performance in different settings of PSA relapse. Inclusion criteria include (1) histologically diagnosed PCa; (2) previous radical therapy; (3) proven biochemical recurrence (BCR) or biochemical persistence (BCP); (4) hormone-sensitive PCa (HSPC); (5) androgen deprivation therapy (ADT)–free for at least 6 months; (6) PSA < 1.5 ng/mL or any PSA in case of negative choline-PET/CT (n = 38). Changes in clinical management were defined by multidisciplinary tumour-board. Clinical settings were BCP (group-1, n = 25); first-time BCR (group-2, n = 121); BCR after salvage therapy (group-3, n = 77). Two hundred twenty-three (223) consecutive patients were enrolled: median PSA = 0.65 ng/mL (0.2–8.9) and median PSAdt = 9.3 months (0.4–144.6). 96.9% received RP as primary therapy. ${}^{68}$Ga-PSMA-11-PET/CT positivity rate was 39.9% (CI95% 33.5–46.7%). Disease confined to pelvis was detected in 23.3% of cases. At least one distant lesion was observed in 16.6% of cases. Secondary objectives are as follows: (1) changes in clinical management were observed in 34.5% of patients; (2) PSA, PSAdt and T stage > 3a were independent predictors (all p < 0.03); (3) ${}^{68}$Ga-PSMA-11-PET/CT positivity rate was 56% (in group 1, 36.3% in group 2, 40.3% in group 3. This study attested the overall good performance of ${}^{68}$Ga-PSMA-11-PET/CT to detect PCa locations in HSPC patients eligible for salvage therapy, influencing the therapy management in 35.4% of cases. Furthermore, patient characteristics are influencing factors of ${}^{68}$Ga-PSMA-11-PET/CT positivity rate and should be considered to reduce false negative scan.

No abstract available

[en] The aim of this study was to investigate the diagnostic accuracy of "1"8F-FDG-PET/CT in osteosarcoma patients suspicious for disease recurrence after adequate surgical therapy. Inclusion criteria were: a) adequate surgical treatment for proven osteosarcoma and documented complete remission after therapy; b) "1"8F-FDG-PET/CT performed during follow-up for clinical/diagnostic suspicion of relapse; c) new surgical treatment with excision of the suspected lesions; d) histological validation of "1"8F-FDG-PET/CT findings. Thirty-seven patients matching all inclusion criteria were retrospectively enrolled (20 men and 17 female). Primary surgical treatment consists of resection (31 cases) or amputation (six cases). "1"8F-FDG-PET/CT performance was assessed with a per-patient and per-site evaluation of sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, positive predicting value (PPV), and negative predicting value (NPV). The sites of relapse were classified as local, lung, lymphnodes (LNs), and distant (other skeletal segments and/or distant soft tissue). The disease-free survival (DFS) and the overall survival (OS) after 18F-FDG PET/CT were evaluated. "1"8F-FDG-PET/CT was positive in 89.2% (33/37) of patients. Local uptake only was observed in 35.1% patients (13/37); lung uptake only in 18.9% (7/37); distant uptake only in 2.7% (1/37) case; multiple sites of uptake in 32.4% (12/37). Histology resulted positive in 92% (34/37) of patients. A total of 51 pathologic lesions were evaluated (22 local relapse, 11 lung metastasis, 10 metastatic LNs, eight distant metastatic lesions). On a per-patient analysis "1"8F-FDG-PET/CT showed a sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, PPV, and NPV of 91%, 75%, 89%, 97%, 50%. On a per-site analysis the performance for local relapse was 96%, 100%, 97%, 100%, 93%, while for lung relapse detection was 80%, 100%, 92%, 100%, 88%. The mean follow-up after "1"8F-FDG-PET/CT was 21.5 months. At the last follow-up, 19% (7/37) of patients were death with disease, 38% (14/37) were alive with disease, and 43% (16/37) had no evidence of disease. Overall survival was 90% and 75% at 24 and 60 months, respectively. "1"8F-FDG-PET/CT showed valuable results for detecting recurrence(s) in osteosarcoma patients with suspicious of relapse after treatment, particularly in the detection of local relapse and lung metastasis. (orig.)

[en] While PET with non-FDG tracers (mainly choline and Ga-PSMA) has commonly been used for restaging in men with biochemically recurrent prostate cancer, as well as for primary staging, it is only recently that a few preliminary studies have addressed the possible use of PET for monitoring the response to systemic therapy of metastatic disease, especially innovative treatments such as abiraterone and enzalutamide. This article aims to evaluate the role of PET imaging with different non-FDG radiotracers for assessment of therapy in advanced prostate cancer patients. (orig.)

[en] The primary objective was the evaluation of Gallium 68 (⁶⁸Ga)-prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA)-11 positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) detection rate, for identifying the site of prostate cancer (PCa) relapse (local vs systemic), stratifying the population according to different clinical stages of biochemical recurrence (BCR). Secondary aims were: 1) to evaluate the association of clinical/pathologic features and ⁶⁸Ga-PSMA-11 PET/CT detection rate, 2) to compare ⁶⁸Ga-PSMA-11 PET/CT with other imaging procedures, and 3) to evaluate the positive predictive value (PPV) in a per-patient analysis. This population was enrolled through a prospective, open label, single-center trial performed at the Nuclear Medicine of the University Hospital of Bologna (Eudract: 2015-004589-27 OsSC). The inclusion criteria were: (1) proven PCa, (2) surgery or radiotherapy as definitive therapy, (3) proven BCR, (4) prostate-specific antigen (PSA) 0.2-2 ng/ml, (5) age ≥ 35 years, and (6) willing to sign an informed consent. Three-hundred and thirty-two (332) patients were enrolled between March 2016 and June 2017; mean/median PSA was 0.84/0.61 ng/ml, 97.9% (325/332) of patients received radical prostatectomy and 2.1% (7/332) radiotherapy. Different patterns of BCR were identified by referent physicians as follows: (a) persisting detectable PSA after radical prostatectomy in 13.5% (45/332) of patients (subgroup 1), (b) first-time PSA failure after radical therapy in 44.9% (149/332) (subgroup 2), and (c) PSA increase after salvage or hormonal therapy in 41.6% (138/332) (subgroup 3). Primary objective: ⁶⁸Ga-PSMA-11 PET/CT detection rate was 53.6% (CI 95% 48.1%-59.1%). In a patient-based analysis, disease confined to pelvis (prostate bed and/or lymph-nodes) was detected in 24.7% of cases (82/332). The presence of at least one distant lesion was observed in 28.9% of cases (96/332). The detection rate in different subgroups was: subgroup 1 = 64.5%, subgroup 2 = 45.6%, and subgroup-3 = 58.7%. Secondary objectives: 1) PSA (p = 0.041) and PSAdt (p = 0.001) showed association with ⁶⁸Ga-PSMA-11 PET/CT detection rate, and 2) correlative imaging was available in 73.2% of patients (243/332). When ⁶⁸Ga-PSMA-11 PET/CT was positive, correlative imaging resulted negative in 83% of cases (108/130). 3) The calculated PPV was 96.2%. Our data confirmed the efficacy of ⁶⁸Ga-PSMA-11 PET/CT for detecting local vs systemic disease in PCa patients presenting PSA failure after radical therapy. Furthermore, ⁶⁸Ga-PSMA-11 PET/CT detection rate is different depending on the clinical stage of BCR, and this information should be taken into consideration by referring physicians. (orig.)

No abstract available

[en] To assess the association between PSA levels, PSA kinetics and other factors and a pathological ⁶⁸Ga-PSMA PET/CT scan in patients with recurrent prostate cancer (rPCa) with biochemical relapse (BR) after radical therapy. Seventy consecutive rPCA patients referred for ⁶⁸Ga-PSMA PET/CT, matching all the following criteria, were retrospectively evaluated: (a) previous radical prostatectomy or primary radiotherapy with curative intent; (b) BR or persisting high PSA levels after primary treatment; and (c) complete clinical and imaging information. The mean ± SD PSA level was 3.5 ± 5.3 ng/mL (median 1.7, range 0.2 - 32.2 ng/mL), the mean ± SD PSA doubling time (PSAdt) was 6.5 ± 5.5 months (median 5.5, range 1.3 - 31.6 months), and the mean ± SD PSA velocity was 7.9 ± 20.5 (median 2.1, range 0.2 - 147.5 ng/mL/year). Statistical analysis was performed to assess which factors were associated with the detection of rPCa on ⁶⁸Ga-PSMA PET/CT. ⁶⁸Ga-PSMA PET/CT was positive in 52 of 70 patients (74.2 %). In 30 patients (42.8 %) lesions limited to the pelvis were detected. Distant lesions were observed in 8 of patients (11.4 %). Local plus systemic lesions were detected in 14 patients (20 %). PSA level (p = 0.017) and PSAdt (p = 0.0001) were significantly different between PET-positive patients (higher PSA level, shorter PSAdt) and PET-negative patients (lower PSA, longer PSAdt). ROC analysis showed that PSAdt 6.5 months and PSA 0.83 ng/mL were optimal cut-off values. In multivariate analysis PSAdt was associated with ⁶⁸Ga-PSMA PET/CT positivity. ⁶⁸Ga-PSMA PET/CT was positive in 17 of 20 patients (85 %) with PSA <2 ng/mL and PSAdt <6.5 months, and in 3 of 16 patients (18.7 %) with PSA <2 ng/mL and PSAdt ≥6.5 months. The great potential of ⁶⁸Ga-PSMA PET/CT in patients with rPCa and BR was confirmed. PSA and PSAdt were valuable predictors of pathological ⁶⁸Ga-PSMA PET/CT findings. (orig.)

No abstract available

[en] To investigate the role of "1"1C-choline PET/CT for evaluating the response to treatment in patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) treated with docetaxel in comparison with PSA response. Inclusion criteria were (a) proven mCRPC, (b) docetaxel as first line of chemotherapy (docetaxel 75 mg/m"2 + prednisone 5 mg), and (c) "1"1C-choline PET/CT and PSA values assessed before and after docetaxel administration. A total of 61 patients were retrospectively enrolled (mean age 68.9 years, range 57 - 84 years). "1"1C-Choline PET/CT was performed at baseline before docetaxel treatment (PET1) and after the end of treatment (PET2). PSA values were measured before treatment (PSA1) and after treatment (PSA2). PET2 was reported as complete response (CR), partial response (PR) or stable disease (SD). Progressive disease (PD) was considered if a new lesion was seen. PSA trend was calculated from the change in absolute values between PSA1 and PSA2. A decrease of ≥50 % between PSA1 and PSA2 was considered a PSA response. Clinical, radiological and laboratory follow-up ranged from 6 to 53 months (mean 13.5 months). Of the 61 patients, 40 (65.5 %) showed PD on PET2, 13 (21.3 %) showed SD, 2 (3.4 %) showed PR, and 6 (9.8 %) showed CR. An increasing PSA trend was seen in 29 patients (47.5 %) and a decreasing PSA trend in 32 patients (52.5 %). A PSA response of ≥50 % was seen in 25 patients (41 %). Radiological PD was seen in 23 of the 29 patients (79.3 %) with an increasing PSA trend, in 16 of the 32 patients (50 %) with a decreasing PSA trend, and in 11 of the 25 patients (44 %) with a PSA response of ≥50 %. In the multivariate statistical analysis, the presence of more than ten bone lesions detected on PET1 was significantly associated with an increased probability of PD on PET2. No association was observed between PSA level and PD on PET2. Our results suggest that an increasing PSA trend measured after docetaxel treatment could be considered predictive of PD. In patients with decreasing PSA values (decreasing PSA trend and a PSA response of ≥50 %), "1"1C-choline PET/CT may be useful to identify those with radiological progression despite a PSA response. Finally, the tumour burden, expressed as number of bone lesions on PET1, is significantly associated with an increased probability of PD on PET2. (orig.)

[en] The aim of this retrospective study was to evaluate the usefulness and the detection rate of ¹¹C-choline PET/CT in a population of patients with prostate cancer (PC), exclusively treated with external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) as primary treatment, who showed biochemical relapse. We enrolled 140 patients showing a serum PSA level >2 ng/mL (mean 8.6 ng/mL, median 5 ng/mL, range 2 - 60 ng/mL). All patients had been treated with EBRT to the prostate gland and prostatic fossa with doses ranging from 70 to 76 Gy in low-risk patients (T1/T2 and/or serum PSA <10 ng/mL) and escalating to >76 Gy (range 76 - 81 Gy) in high-risk patients (T3/T4 and/or serum PSA >10 ng/mL). Of the 140 patients, 53 were receiving androgen deprivation therapy at the time of the scan. All positive ¹¹C-choline PET/CT findings were validated by transrectal ultrasound-guided biopsy or at least 12 months of follow-up with contrast-enhanced CT, MR, bone scintigraphy or a repeated ¹¹C-choline PET/CT scan. The relationships between the detection rate of ¹¹C-choline PET/CT and the factors PSA level, PSA kinetics, Gleason score, age, time to relapse and SUVmax in patients with positive findings were analysed. ¹¹C-Choline PET/CT detected the site of relapse in 123 of the 140 patients with a detection rate of 87.8 % (46 patients showed local relapse, 31 showed local and distant relapse, and 46 showed only distant relapse). In patients with relapse the mean serum PSA level was 9.08 ng/mL (median 5.1 ng/mL, range 2 - 60 ng/mL), the mean PSA doubling time was 5.6 months (median 3.5 months, range 0.4 - 48 months), and the mean PSA velocity was 15 ng/mL/year (median 8.8 ng/mL/year, range 0.4 - 87 ng/mL/year). Of the 123 patients with relapse, 77 (62.6 %) showed distant relapse with/without local relapse, and of these 77, 31 (40.2 %) showed oligometastatic disease (one or two distant lesions: lymph node lesions only in 16, bone lesions only in 14, and lymph node lesions and bone lesions in 1). In univariate and multivariate analyses PSA kinetics was the only variable affecting ¹¹C-choline PET/CT detection rate. A significant correlation between PSA kinetics and site of recurrence (local relapse only vs. distant metastasis) was also observed. The detection rate of ¹¹C-choline PET/CT in patients with PC showing biochemical recurrence after EBRT as primary treatment is relatively high (87.8 %). ¹¹C-Choline PET/CT was able to detect extraprostatic disease in the 62.6 % of patients. Considering this high detection rate, ¹¹C-choline PET/CT could have clinical usefulness in the management of these PC patients, but this should be confirmed in future studies. (orig.)