GSPECT-CT myocardial scintigraphy plus calcium scores as screening tool for prevention of cardiac side effects in leftsided breast cancer radiotherapy.

Purpose: To use gated (G) 99mTc-Tetrofosmin single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT)-CT combined with coronary calcium (Ca) scores to assess and differentiate patients with left-sided breast cancer, after surgery and doxorubicin (DOX)-based chemotherapy and who had cardiac risk factors and needed to adapt radiotherapy (RT) in order to prevent cumulative cardiac side effects caused by RT.

Methods: Included were 28 female patients (mean age 49±16 years) with asymptomatic left-sided breast cancer, one month after DOX-based chemotherapy (mean 522±36mg) and before RT. A group of 18 patients (study group) with cardiovascular risk factors was included, while a group of 10 patients with no cardiovascular risk factors served as control.

Discrepancies and priorities in staging and restaging malignant lymphoma by SPET, SPET/CT, PET/CT and PET/MRI.

Due to the rapid development of modern imaging methods and also of medical oncology, there has been a significant progress in diagnosis and treatment of malignant lymphomas in the last few years. Nuclear medicine (NM) imaging methods gained new perspectives via the so called hybrid technologies-single-photon emission tomography combined with computed tomography (SPET/CT), positron emission tomography combined with computed tomography (PET/CT) and recently even positron emission tomography combined with magnetic resonance imaging (PET/MRI), which have led to a better image quality and diagnostic findings. Since SPET/CT evolved later than the "gold standard" 18F-FDG-PET/CT in lymphoma diagnostics, there are fewer studies with it, but it seems to be an excellent alternative to PET/CT.

Myocardial scintigraphy, echocardiography and proBNP for early detection of myocardial cardiotoxicity in breast cancer patients after chemo-radiotherapy.

The most severe side effect in breast cancer patients, treated with chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy is cardiotoxicity, leading to chronic heart failure and worsening the quality of life. The aim of our study was to detect early in these patients signs of cardiotoxicity. Twenty four breast cancer patients were included in our study after combined treatment (chemo and radiotherapy).

Assessment of myocardial viability with (99m)Tc-sestamibi -gated SPET images in patients undergoing percutaneous transluminar coronary angioplasty.

The present study was designed to evaluate whether nitroglycerin administration preceding the injection of technetium-99m labelled metroxy-isobutyl-isonitryl ((99m)Tc-sestamibi), improves the detection of myocardial perfusion defect reversibility. Moreover, we assessed whether myocardium kinetics improved after the percutaneous transluminar coronary angioplasty (PTCA) study. The study population consisted of 12 patients, 8 males and 4 females, 48-73 years old (mean age: 60.