Early Imaging and Molecular Changes with Neoadjuvant Bevacizumab in Stage II/III Breast Cancer.

This prospective, phase II study evaluated novel biomarkers as predictors of response to bevacizumab in patients with breast cancer (BC), using serial imaging methods and gene expression analysis. Patients with primary stage II/III BC received bevacizumab 15 mg/kg (cycle 1; C1), then four cycles of neoadjuvant docetaxel doxorubicin, and bevacizumab every 3 weeks (C2-C5). Tumour proliferation and hypoxic status were evaluated using F-fluoro-3'-deoxy-3'-L-fluorothymidine (FLT)- and F-fluoromisonidazole (FMISO)-positron emission tomography (PET) at baseline, and during C1 and C5.

Ultra-low dose whole-body CT for attenuation correction in a dual tracer PET/CT protocol for multiple myeloma.

Purpose: To investigate within phantoms the minimum CT dose allowed for accurate attenuation correction of PET data and to quantify the effective dose reduction when a CT for this purpose is incorporated in the clinical setting.

Methods: The NEMA image quality phantom was scanned within a large parallelepiped container. Twenty-one different CT images were acquired to correct attenuation of PET raw data.

Significant dose reduction is feasible in FDG PET/CT protocols without compromising diagnostic quality.

Purpose: To reduce the radiation dose to patients by optimizing oncological FDG PET/CT protocols.

Methods: The baseline PET/CT protocol in our institution for oncological PET/CT examinations consisted of the administration of 5.18 MBq/kg of FDG and a CT acquisition with a reference current-time product of 120 mAs.

Impact of time-of-flight and point-spread-function in SUV quantification for oncological PET.

Background: Accuracy in the quantification of the SUV is a critical point in PET because proper quantification of tumor uptake is essential for therapy monitoring and prognosis evaluation. Recent advances such as time-of-flight (TOF) and point-spread-function (PSF) reconstructions have dramatically improved detectability. However, first experiences with these techniques have shown a consistent tendency to measure markedly high SUV values, bewildering nuclear medicine physicians and referring clinicians.

Voxel-based analysis of dual-time-point 18F-FDG PET images for brain tumor identification and delineation.

Unlabelled: We have investigated dual-time-point (18)F-FDG PET for the detection and delineation of high-grade brain tumors using quantitative criteria applied on a voxel basis.

Methods: Twenty-five patients with suspected high-grade brain tumors and inconclusive MRI findings underwent (11)C-methionine PET and dual-time-point (18)F-FDG PET. Images from each subject were registered and spatially normalized.

(13)N-ammonia PET as a measurement of hindlimb perfusion in a mouse model of peripheral artery occlusive disease.

Unlabelled: Peripheral arterial occlusive disease (PAOD) is a leading cause of mortality and morbidity in the western world. The development of noninvasive methods for assessment and comparison of the efficacy of novel therapies in animal models is of great importance.

Methods: Hindlimb ischemia was induced in nude mice by ligation and excision of the left femoral artery (n = 5) or the left iliac artery (n = 10).

Functional neuroanatomy of sustained attention in schizophrenia: contribution of parietal cortices.

Deficits in sustained attention have been frequently described in schizophrenia. The neuroanatomical basis reported previously have included altered levels of activation in cingulate and prefrontal cortex, but the contribution of further regions remains unclear. We explored the full neuroanatomy underlying the sustained attentional deficits observed in naïve schizophrenics compared with controls.